Restore a Suxen
by Cheerpup1392
Summary: The Charmed Ones face an invincible demon & need the Nexus to defeat it. They must restore the Nexus, but consequences of the restoration are not what they expected. The spell also restores old friends & foes alike. After season 8, disregards comics. Romance and adventure/supernatural, stays true to characterization from show. Includes all main characters from show at end of S8.
1. Chapter 1

Ch. 1

"Paige!" Piper screamed desperately as she dodged another energy ball. "Bring Phoebe," she yelled hoping that they would be here soon. Piper didn't know who this demon was, but they were definitely going to need the Power of Three.

"Piper, watch out!" Leo exclaimed as her eyes returned to the demon in the conservatory. An athame had suddenly appeared in his hand and he quickly threw it at the witch. Her hands immediately shot into the air and it froze. The demon began walking towards her and she backed up slowly, her hands up ready to attack.

"Leo, get the kids out of here," she said as she blew up a potted plant behind the demon to distract him. His black, beady eyes only became more inflamed with anger and he let out a growl from deep within his throat.

"But Pi-"

"NOW!" she added urgently as Leo agreed rushing up the stairs while Piper ran towards the kitchen. She knew she needed to put more distance between herself and the demon. She couldn't fight it and had to buy time until her sisters got there. As if on cue, Phoebe and Paige arrived in white lights and rushed to Piper's side.

"What's going on?" Phoebe asked as the demon shimmered into the kitchen in front of them.

"I'd like to know that myself!" Piper exclaimed as she tried yet again to blow him up. As Paige and Phoebe saw Piper's powers had little to no effect on the demon, they began to understand Piper's urgency. Paige saw a sharp knife on the counter and called for it.

"Knife," she yelled and orbed it into the demon's chest. With only a slight cry of pain the demon pulled it out and the girls noticed he barely bled from the wound. His dark blue skin healed itself almost immediately, but not before they saw that his blood was pure black. In return, he threw the knife at the sisters, and they all had to duck to avoid it. While the demon was still distracted from the knife wound, Phoebe ran to him punching him square in the face. Showing no pain whatsoever, he returned her punch with one of his own sending her flying against the far wall and rendering her unconscious. Piper could see claws starting to grow from where his fingers had once been, and the angrier he got, the longer the claws grew. His eyes flickered red and he walked closer to them.

"We have to get out of here," Piper said knowing that they weren't going to be able to fight this demon. "Paige, now," she said as they rushed over to Phoebe. Touching both her sisters, Paige orbed all three of them up to the attic. Piper quickly grabbed the Book of Shadows before Paige orbed them all to Magic School.

"What happened?" Leo asked as he saw the three girls orb into the Magic School library. They wouldn't have come there unless it was urgent. Then he saw Phoebe was unconscious and he grew even more concerned.

"The boys?" Piper asked glancing at Leo, and in that moment he could tell that it was serious. None of them knew what was going on, but he hadn't seen that look in her eyes since they had to vanquish Zankou. She was going through that stage of panic before she would take control of the situation and figure out what to do.

"They're fine. They're in the nursery," he assured her as Paige kneeled down to heal Phoebe. Slowly Phoebe woke up and remembered what had taken place back at the manor. Suddenly Henry appeared in a cloud of pink smoke looking tentative and worried.

"Henry, how did you get here?" Piper asked and Paige stood up.

"The potion," Paige answered for him. "I made a potion that would bring him here. I told him if I ever left to one of your urgent calls and didn't come back for a while, to use it and come here," she said rushing over to him and hugging him tightly.

"When did you make that potion?" Piper asked and Paige sighed.

"Right after we reclaimed Magic School," Paige admitted.

"That was over six months ago," Piper said quietly and Paige shrugged. "Just after the whole thing with the Triad and Billie and Christy."

"I know we thought this was all over, but I just figured, you never know," she whispered as they all realized that their worst fears had come true. Even after everything they had done, somehow there was still an incredibly powerful demon after them. Phoebe's eyes widened as the gravity of the situation suddenly hit her.

"Coop," she whispered knowing that if the demon couldn't get to the three of them he would go after the ones they loved next. Immediately Coop beamed into Magic School with a look of concern as he saw everyone gathered there. He knew something was wrong as Phoebe was still sitting on the floor and they all had somber looks on their faces.

"What's going on? Why did you call out to me?" Coop asked worriedly as he rushed over to his girlfriend.

"Something's after us Coop," she whispered as the couples instinctively paired off. "Something we couldn't fight." Phoebe was rarely scared, but right now she was downright terrified. Between the three of them, one of the sisters had always been able to have some effect on a demon even if it only lasted a moment. But this demon seemed invincible. "It wasn't anything we've ever seen before," she whispered and Coop held her tightly as a few stubborn tears leaked out of her eyes.

"It's okay. We always have Magic School to come to now," he reminded her and she nodded against his chest.

* * *

"Paige, what's going on?" Henry asked as Paige led him to the other side of the library so they could all have some privacy.

"I, we don't know," she admitted quietly and for the first time since he had met her Henry recognized fear on his wife's face. She was usually determined, and even when she was staring death in the face she was ready to fight. But right now all he saw was uncertainty and fear. "You did the right thing by coming here," she told him.

"I was worried. You told me Piper was terrified, and I know Piper. She's never terrified," he whispered and Paige nodded. "Was it a demon?" he asked and Paige nodded again but remained silent. "Paige, come on. Talk to me," he urged and she sighed.

"I don't know what it was. It wasn't an upper level demon. It was…stronger," she whispered not wanting her sisters to hear. "I've never seen anything like it in real life or in the book. We don't even know what it wants."

"You'll figure it out," he promised and Paige's eyes fell to the floor. "Hey," he said putting his finger under her chin so her gaze met his. "You will. You and your sisters may be powerful, but you're smart too. I've seen you guys. You'll figure this out."

* * *

"Piper, are you hurt?" Leo asked and she shook her head silently as she glanced at her sisters. They seemed to be occupied with Coop and Henry so she turned back to Leo.

"What the hell was that thing?" she asked raising her voice slightly and Leo shushed her. He didn't want anyone else worrying yet, but they didn't seem notice what Piper had said. They were too preoccupied in their own conversations. "No, I'm serious," Piper continued but now was whispering. "That was not just a demon. That was…what was it?" she repeated and Leo shook his head.

"I don't know, Piper," he admitted and she rested her head in the palm of her hand. She stayed quiet for a long time and Leo knew that she was working through everything in her mind.

"I thought this was over," she whispered her voice cracking slightly. "I thought after everything with the Triad that we had moved on. To a normal life," she said and Leo sighed, his heart breaking for her. "What if this is just the beginning?" she questioned voicing the fears that they all had. "What if this demon is the first of a whole new freaking species that's come to bring hell on earth or something?"

"Then it wouldn't have started with you. It would have started with something small," Leo rationalized and Piper rolled her eyes. "Come on, Piper. This isn't anything new to this family. We can deal with this. We'll fight this," he promised as he grabbed her waist and his eyes bore into hers.

"Leo, we shouldn't have to!" she exclaimed and he nodded.

"You're right," he conceded but she didn't respond. "What no sarcasm?" he asked hoping to get Piper back into the right fighting mood. "That's usually how you handle this situation."

"You mean the whole 'demon trying to kill us situation?' Sorry I'm a little out of practice," she said wryly and Leo smiled knowing that Piper was ready to dive into this. She sighed and shook her head. "Okay," she finally relented as she walked away from him. "Come on, let's check the book," she announced to the room and Phoebe and Paige nodded. Piper slowly opened the book that they had barely touched over the last six months and felt an odd sense of nostalgia wash over her. It had been a part of their lives for over eight years. As much as she had always claimed to hate the weekly demon fighting, a part of her now yearned for it.

"Well, he was dark blue," Phoebe began as Piper flipped through the familiar pages and the three sets of eyes bore into the words covering them. "Bled black, really strong…knocked me on my ass," Phoebe mused.

"Threw energy balls, could conjure an athame from thin air, black eyes that turned red, claws…" Piper trailed off as they continued checking the book. They weren't coming up with anything and none of them were surprised. If it had been in the book, chances are they would have come across it once or twice by now. The demon they had faced today was entirely different than anything they had seen or read about. "Paige, go check with the elders. See if they know anything," Piper suggested as Paige nodded and orbed off.

"What should we do?" Phoebe asked and Piper shut the book.

"Well, we're in the Magic School library," Piper pointed out. "We should do some research," she reasoned as the remaining five people started for the bookshelves.

"Are we looking for anything in particular?" Henry asked unsure of what he should be doing to help.

"Anything with black blood," Piper said before pulling a thick, dusty book off a shelf. "It's always the blood," she muttered more to herself than anyone else. All five of them grabbed a few books and got ready for a long night of research.

Phoebe opened the book on the top of the stack. Its focus was on the spiritual nexus, and as soon as she opened to the first page she was pulled into a premonition. She saw the three of them recite a spell and watched as Zankou was vanquished and the nexus destroyed.

"What did you see?" Piper asked anxiously and Phoebe shook her head.

"Just…Zankou. I saw us vanquish Zankou," she told her and Piper glanced at Leo who shrugged unsure of what it meant.

"That's it?" Piper pressed and Phoebe thought hard. She wondered if there had been anything different in her premonition than the real event, but she couldn't think of anything.

"Yeah, that's it," Phoebe said disappointed. What was the point of that premonition? They already knew they'd vanquished Zankou and destroyed the nexus in the process.

"Alright, well let's make a note of it and keep researching," Leo suggested and the rest of them nodded before they returned to their research.

It had been nearly an hour and the room was still silent. Paige hadn't returned and the rest of them were still researching but hadn't found any useful information. They were all getting frustrated. With every page they read that didn't contain anything helpful, their eyes began to water a little more and their heads grew heavier. Their lives weren't supposed to be this way anymore. This was all supposed to be over.

The only sounds anyone could hear were frustrated sighs and an occasional pencil tapping. Pages flipped, and every now and then a book would shut to be followed by another one opening. But still, there was nothing gained from these activities and the tension was growing. Finally Henry spoke up and broke the silence.

"You know, with all the magic you guys have, it's amazing that you've never indexed this stuff," he said and Phoebe laughed out loud. "I'm serious. You can literally save the world, but you can't make an index!" he joked flipping through a volume that had to be nearly a thousand pages long. "Look at this thing," he gestured to the book. "Did you guys always have to do this?"

"Usually we found it in our book," Piper said closing the book in front of her and taking a short break.

"What does it mean if this demon isn't in your book?" Henry asked.

"It means that nobody in our family has ever gone up against it before," Phoebe explained and Piper sighed.

"Or they didn't live long enough to write about it," she pointed out as her eyes met Phoebe's. They had a silent conversation where they agreed that if they couldn't find anything soon they would have to resign themselves to the fact that this would be the end of the Charmed Ones. At that moment Paige orbed in, and five sets of expectant eyes turned to look at her.

"They know nothing," she said and Piper rolled her eyes.

"Of course they know nothing," she muttered before grabbing a book and handing it to Paige. "Let's read."


	2. Chapter 2

**I've really enjoyed writing this so far. I have huge plans for this story and I can't wait for them to unfold. Let me know what you think. I'd love to hear from everyone! My updates should be pretty consistent because I'm out of school for the summer so I have a lot of time to write. I can't wait to hear what you readers have to say!  
**

Ch. 2

With a quick glance at the clock, Phoebe could see that they had been researching for over three hours and still hadn't come across anything of use. Coop was still sitting at the table, but Phoebe had moved to sit on top of a bookshelf as she flipped through page after page. Piper and Leo sat next to each other on the couch, reading with a focus that only the two of them had. Paige was lying on her stomach on the floor with a book in front of her while Henry sat in a chair next to her.

You could hear a pin drop, and the tension was growing by the second. Phoebe sighed and slammed her book closed. They weren't getting anywhere like this.

"Should we call Billie?" she asked and Paige looked up at her.

"What can she do?" Paige questioned and Phoebe rolled her eyes.

"I don't know, Paige! At least it would be another set of eyes. We've been here for hours and haven't found anything," she exclaimed, the frustration evident in her voice. "We should just go back to the house and-"

"The demon is probably still at the house, Phoebe," Leo pointed out and Phoebe groaned out loud.

"I don't care, Leo. Let's just go fight him," she insisted and Piper finally looked up from her book.

"With what? Our powers barely fazed him," she reminded her and Phoebe began pacing the room.

"Potions, maybe?" Phoebe offered and Coop stood up and walked over to her.

"You need to just relax, Phoebe," he told her quietly. "We can stay here until we find something to beat this demon and then we can all-"

"NO! No, Coop. That's not what we do," she said angrily turning away from him. "We fight. We're the freaking Charmed Ones!" she said throwing her arms out for emphasis. Paige sat up slightly as she listened to what her sister was saying. "I mean, nobody has ever beaten us before, and I don't think we should let this guy start now. I say we go back there and give him everything we've got."

"You should all wait until you have more information," Coop said and Phoebe shot him a death glare.

"That's not what we do Coop. We fight. We don't hide," she insisted as she turned to look at Piper and she could tell that she was starting to get to her older sister. "What do you say, Piper? Do we have one more fight in us?" she asked and all eyes turned to Piper. She quickly glanced at Leo, but he knew she would make the right decision.

"Alright, let's make the potions," she said and Paige stood up in agreement. Henry smiled slightly and Leo went to get potion ingredients. Coop sat silently off to the side as he watched the witches go into what he felt was a suicide mission.

"I'll write a power of three spell," Phoebe offered knowing that Paige and Piper were the best with potions. They nodded and started mixing potions. Phoebe sat down with a new resolve as she grabbed a pencil and pad of paper. She took a deep breath and felt better knowing that they were going on the offensive. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Coop walking towards her, and she sighed already knowing what he was going to say. He sat next to her and took the pencil out of her hands so she would pay attention to him.

"Phoebe, I can't let you do this. I love you," he whispered and Phoebe felt her heart ache for him. She remembered what it was like when someone she loved was putting their life at risk and all she could do was watch.

"I love you too, Coop. But we have to do this," she told him as her palm came up to the side of his face. "We'll be back. All of us. I promise," she said as he grabbed her wrist and kissed her hand. With a look of understanding, he slowly got up and walked away and Phoebe sighed. She turned back to the task at hand and tried to clear her mind. This was going to have to be one of the most powerful spells she'd ever written.

* * *

"What if we each take a vile of a different potion, and when we combine them hope it works?" Paige proposed and Piper shrugged.

"It's worth a shot," she said filling the nearest vile with a blue potion. "This will stun him, right? She asked and Paige nodded. Piper put the cork in and she saw Leo come up to her studying the potion ingredients they were using.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked worriedly.

"Nope," Piper responded and looked at the potion. "Add more mandrake root," she said to Paige who looked at her like she was crazy.

"Piper, that will cause an explosion," she pointed out and Piper nodded.

"I know. I would like this demon to explode and since I can't blow him up I would like this potion to do that," she explained grabbing the mandrake root and holding it high over the pot. She dropped it and froze it before it came in contact with the potion. "Everybody back up," she instructed and everyone did as they were told, quickly walking away from anything involving potions. When everyone was a safe distance away, Piper unfroze the mandrake root and it landed in the potion. Immediately there was a loud explosion that blew away any book or paper in the general area of the potion. "Well, there. It blew up," Piper said simply as she walked back towards it and began filling three vials with the new potion.

"I've got the spell," Phoebe announced handing a copy to Paige and then to Piper. "Hopefully if we throw your new potion and then say this spell," she said gesturing to the paper in their hands, "we'll have a fighting chance."

"How are you going to get him still enough to throw the potion?" Leo asked and Piper held up the first potion they mixed which was blue.

"This one SHOULD disorient him for a few seconds so we have time to do it," she explained and Leo nodded knowing it was their best shot.

"Well girls, are we ready?" Paige asked and Piper hesitated.

"Just, one second," she whispered walking over to Leo. "I want to see the boys," she said softly and Leo's face registered what she was implying.

"Piper, no. You'll come back and-"

"Leo," she said sternly but quietly so she wouldn't upset anyone else. "I want to see them. Let's go," she said leading him in the direction of the nursery.

"Paige," Henry said walking over to her and wrapping her in a tight hug which she returned gratefully. "I love you," he whispered in her ear and she was surprised to feel the sting of tears.

"I love you too," she assured him. "I always will."

"Go kick that demon's ass for me, Baby," he said and she laughed softly and wiped away the few tears that had fallen from her eyes.

* * *

"Phoebe," Coop said and instead of responding, Phoebe simply grabbed his face and pressed her lips against his. His arms instinctively wrapped around her waist pulling her closer. Too soon she pulled away and he rested his forehead against hers. "I don't want you to do this. I have a bad feeling."

"I know," she said but refused to admit that she had a bad feeling too. "But if anyone can beat this thing, it's us," she reminded him and he nodded.

"You're right," he conceded knowing that Phoebe had made up her mind and now all he could do was give her the confidence she would need in the fight. "Go do what you do, Phoebe. Save the world from evil and then we'll go home and put this all behind us." Phoebe nodded even though she had a suspicion that even if they vanquished this demon, it wouldn't be the end.

* * *

"Come here, Wyatt," Piper said trying to sound normal for the sake of her boys. Bending down so she was on his level, she pulled him into her arms and fought off tears as she hugged him tightly. "Mommy loves you," she assured him as she pulled back to look into his eyes. "Be good for Daddy, okay?" she asked and he nodded before she hugged him again hoping they wouldn't have to grow up the way she did-without a mother. She kissed him on the top of the head before turning to pick Chris up. "Mommy loves you too, Chris," she whispered not trusting her voice at the moment. "And no matter what happens I'll always be with you," she said kissing him as she held him tightly. Reluctantly she stood up and took a deep breath. She let her eyes linger on Wyatt and her fingers slowly rubbed Chris' back.

"Piper," Leo interrupted gently, knowing that it would only get harder for her the longer she stayed. She nodded as she set Chris down next to Wyatt.

"Okay," she said taking another deep breath and grabbing Leo's hand. "Let's go." When they got into the hallway she stopped and wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him into a deep kiss. He held her tightly, desperately hoping this wouldn't be his last chance to do so. He pulled himself away and grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze. "I love you," she told him. "Take care of them," she said gesturing towards the door to the nursery.

"We both will," Leo assured her and she nodded before they turned and headed back towards the library in an understanding silence. When they got there, Phoebe and Paige were standing next to each other ready to go. Leo reluctantly watched as Piper walked and stood on the other side of Paige.

"Does everybody have the spell and potions?" Phoebe asked and the sisters nodded. "Okay then, it's time," she said and the sisters grabbed hands before orbing out.

* * *

They arrived in the living room of the manor and looked around cautiously. The house was empty and the girls slowly walked around the couch.

"Do you think he's gone?" Paige asked and neither Phoebe nor Piper answered, knowing that it was never that easy. A demon that powerful would never just retreat like that.

"If he is, he won't be for long," Phoebe finally said as she slid the copy of the spell into her back pocket and clutched the stun potion in her hand. The three girls stood there waiting for something...they just weren't sure what.

Suddenly they saw a demon shimmer in, but it wasn't the same demon from before. This demon was pale green, shorter, and had sharp teeth and claws to match. All three of them had their potions ready to throw, but when they realized it was a different demon, they waited, wanting to see what they were up against.

"Ah…who is that?" Piper asked as the demon snarled and charged at the sisters. Phoebe and Piper dashed out of the way and Paige instinctively orbed behind the demon. Piper reached out and tried to blow him up. The demon stumbled slightly, but was otherwise unharmed. His attention now focused on Piper, he rushed towards her. She quickly reached out and froze him, letting out a relieved sigh when he froze.

"Should we throw the potion?" Paige questioned and Piper shook her head.

"No, if our powers work on him then we don't need the potion. We should save it for the other demon," she said and Paige nodded. They walked in front of the demon to get a better look and despite Piper's words, Paige still held the potion ready. As they sighed in both relief and disappointment, Phoebe voiced what they were all wondering.

"So where's the other guy? Do you think they're working together?" she asked and Paige shrugged before the demon suddenly fought through the freeze and lunged at Piper. His hand flew out and his claws scratched Piper's chest, ripping her clothes and leaving deep cuts on her skin. Crying out, she doubled over in pain unable to retaliate in any way. Blood seeped from her wounds and her hands instinctively clutched her chest trying to relieve the pain and stop the bleeding.

"Piper!" Paige exclaimed, but before she could reach her sister the demon had violently thrown Piper across the room. She collided with the wall and fell to the floor in a crumpled heap, still bleeding. "Clock!" Paige called, thinking quickly as the clock flew at the demon hitting him sharply in the back. The glass shattered against him and he let out a strangled cry of rage.

Since the demon was distracted by the glass, Phoebe threw the potion to stun him. While the demon stood dazed for a few seconds, she caught a glimpse of blood seeping from one of the cuts caused by the clock. She saw that it was black, and when she realized that Piper wasn't breathing and the demon was already recovering from the potion, she kicked him forcefully in the jaw.

"Paige, hurry! We have to get out of here now!" she yelled trying to distract the demon long enough to allow Paige to get to her and Piper so they could get away. Paige immediately orbed to Piper and waited for Phoebe to rush towards them. As soon as Phoebe's hand touched Paige's shoulder, they orbed back to Magic School hoping that it wasn't too late for Piper.


	3. Chapter 3

**I appreciate those of you who have reviewed so far! Here's the next chapter. In the next few chapters things really start moving along.  
**

Ch. 3

Henry, Leo, and Coop sat nervously in the Magic School library wondering what was going on back at the manor. The girls had only been gone for a few minutes, but it didn't take long for the worry and fear to set in.

"We never should have let them go," Coop said aiming his comment at Leo.

"They had to," he pointed out and Coop rolled his eyes. "This is what they do. They fight. We have to trust that they know what they're doing," he told Coop and Henry nodded in agreement with Leo.

"No matter what happens, I know Paige wouldn't want to go down without a fight," he said and Coop sighed knowing they were both right. "I just hate sitting here helpless," he added and that was something all three men could agree on.

Suddenly they saw three figures orb in, and they stood, quickly rushing over to them. Coop breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Phoebe was unharmed, but he stopped himself from saying anything when he saw Paige kneeling over Piper.

"What happened?" Leo asked frantically as he fell to his knees next to her. He saw the blood and when he realized she wasn't breathing, a few tears burned the corners of his eyes. "Piper," he whispered as he brushed some hair off her face and clutched her hand tightly. "Paige what's taking so long?" he nearly screamed and she forced herself to remain calm.

"She's practically dead, Leo! That's what's taking so long," she spat back, her emotions running high as well. Henry felt his heart racing as he watched the scene in front of him. He cared for Piper like a sister, and if anything happened to her he didn't know how his life with Paige would ever be the same. Phoebe clung to Coop as she wiped tears away. It never took this long to heal any of them. Phoebe could tell that the cuts weren't the only injuries Piper had, and she didn't even want to think about what internal damage there might be.

Finally they all saw the cuts start to heal, and Piper slowly started to regain consciousness. When she was fully healed Paige backed up and Piper sat up.

"Piper," Leo breathed out in relief as he hugged her tightly. "I thought I lost you," he admitted as she wrapped her arms around him. For a while she thought she'd been lost.

"It sucks to be the one watching the healing, doesn't it?" she asked and Leo laughed realizing that his wife was still very much alive and still very much the woman he fell in love with.

"That it does," he agreed as he helped her stand up. "So, the demon was still there?" Leo assumed and Piper let out a short laugh.

"I wish," she said and Leo looked at her confused before they sat on the couch with the other four people standing in front of them. "It was a different demon. I couldn't blow him up, but I could freeze him. He didn't stay frozen though. He fought through it after only a few seconds," she explained and then sighed. "There were claws and then I was mostly unconscious," she said wryly and Phoebe jumped in.

"He looked nothing like the other demon, but he was almost just as strong," she concluded. "And this one had black blood too. I saw it after Paige hit him with the clock."

"Oh Paige! You broke the clock?" Piper asked and Henry laughed as the tension broke in the room. In that moment the demon fighting became another part of life rather than a life and death situation. Leo smiled. They were finally getting back into the swing of things.

"Yeah, right before I saved your life," she retorted with a smirk and Piper wrinkled her face at her.

"Alright, let's vanquish these guys," she said. "I have to work tomorrow," she pointed out and Leo looked at her like she was crazy. "What? The club can't run itself," she defended. "And just because demons are attacking doesn't mean we can't lead somewhat normal lives."

Oh yeah. They were back.

* * *

"So do you think we have a whole new race of demon?" Phoebe asked and Leo shrugged. They sat in the Magic School library. It had become their new headquarters since the manor was off limits, and it was the only place they were safe from the demons.

"I've never heard of a new demonic race, but I've never heard of demons with black blood either," he admitted and Piper sat quietly thinking about the two demons they had encountered.

"What else did these two demons have in common?" she wondered out loud and Phoebe and Paige wracked their brains.

"Well they both had claws, could shimmer, were really strong, and then the black blood," Phoebe said and Piper nodded. "But, a lot of demons have claws, are strong, and can shimmer," she mumbled running a hand through her hair with a sigh. The events of the day were taking their toll on everyone.

"It has to be the blood," Piper finally said and Leo, Phoebe, and Paige nodded. "It's the only link. We have to find out what it means."

"We've already researched black blood and until we read EVERY book here," Paige trailed off and Piper had to admit she was right. They had to narrow their search somehow, otherwise this could take months.

Coop remained silent as he watched Phoebe. He hadn't gotten to see her in action very much, but he had to admit she truly was in her element. He could tell she was tired, and he found himself feeling totally helpless. He knew nothing of this demon. He sighed quietly and he glanced at a clock. It was after eight at night. No wonder why he was hungry. None of them had had lunch or dinner and he finally thought of something he could do to help. Standing up he walked over to Phoebe and gave her a quick kiss.

"I'll be right back," he whispered and before she could ask where he was going he'd beamed away. Phoebe forced herself to stay calm. Coop was smart. He knew there were dangerous demons after them, and if he was going somewhere he would be careful. She took a deep breath and made herself think only of demons until Henry broke her still unproductive train of thought.

"Alright, let's start at the beginning," Henry offered walking over with a legal pad and pen. Everyone looked at him with a surprised expression. "What?" he asked. "I may not be magical, but I do know how to conduct an investigation," he pointed out and Paige smiled to herself.

"Okay," Piper said standing up and pacing the room. "From the beginning. I was putting the boys down for a nap and the demon shimmered in. He threw an energy ball, I froze it, and then tried to blow him up," she explained and Henry took notes. "When I realized I couldn't, I ran out of the room to get the demon away from the boys, and that was when Leo came in. I got Leo to bring the boys here, then called for Paige and Phoebe," she explained and Paige nodded. Henry started writing a description of the demon and his powers from what they had already talked about, and then looked up at them.

"Then we researched and found nothing," he said and Phoebe rolled her eyes. They weren't getting anything with this approach either. "So what did we research? What can we rule out?"

"Book of Shadows," Paige said and Piper's eyes widened at the same time that Paige realized the same thing. "We never checked the book for this demon!" They started to stand and Henry held up a hand.

"Wait. One thing at a time. What else did we research?" he asked and Leo looked at the stack of books and summarized the titles.

"So we hit a little bit of everything and got nothing," Paige said in what was dangerously close to a whine.

"Wait," Piper said as her eyes traveled to Phoebe. "Phoebe had a premonition of us vanquishing Zankou," she reminded everyone and Henry quickly scribbled something down. "What were you reading when that happened? What did you touch?"

"Um," Phoebe thought back finally feeling like they might be on to something. "I had just opened a book dedicated to-oh my God," she whispered and hit herself in the head.

"What?" Piper asked excitedly and Phoebe looked up.

"The book was about the nexus. The premonition didn't matter. I was supposed to see us destroying the nexus," she realized and the sisters stared at each other wondering what the nexus, which was now destroyed, could have to do with the current attacks.

"Phoebe, go find the book that gave you the premonition," Piper directed and Phoebe rushed off to the stack of books they had already read. "Look for anything about the nexus, black blood, demons…anything!" she called after her sister before she turned to Paige. "You go check the Book of Shadows for anything on the second demon or the nexus that we haven't thought of yet," she said and Paige nodded before heading to the book. "You," she said turning to Henry who looked at her with a slight fear in his eyes. "Thank you," she told him and he smiled, handing her the notes he'd written down. "Leo, come with me," she said and Leo followed her to the bookshelves.

Phoebe was already pouring over the book that had given her the premonition in the first place. Leo and Piper grabbed every book related in any way to the nexus, finally feeling like that had a starting point for their research.

"Paige, if you don't find anything go back through the books we've been through and see if we missed anything nexus related," Phoebe said looking up only briefly from the book.

"Got it," Paige agreed flipping through the Book of Shadows with a new resolve.

After about an hour, they had compiled a long list of demons that were mentioned in conjunction with the nexus. They hadn't found much on any individual demon, but if they had a list they could research each demon from there. Phoebe was starting to get worried that Coop still wasn't back, but she didn't say anything. For the first time all day they were making progress, and she didn't want to be the one to stop it.

As she thought about him, he beamed back into the library carrying two pizzas and two suitcases. Phoebe smiled when she saw the pizzas and rushed over to take them from him.

"Coop, you brought food!" Paige exclaimed happily as Phoebe set the pizza boxes on a nearby table and everyone hungrily grabbed their slices. "I'm starving," Paige said and Coop smiled finally feeling useful.

"I brought some clothes for me, Phoebe, Henry, and Paige. I didn't want to go to the manor because the demons might be able to sense when someone's there, so Piper and Leo can borrow some things like maybe pajamas, a toothbrush," he offered but was cut off as Phoebe threw her arms around him.

"Thank you so much!" she exclaimed and she attributed the tears that stung her eyes to the overly stressful situation they had been thrust into today.

"Well I figured we'd all work better after we had something to eat," he said and grinned happily knowing he had done the right thing. The six of them ate and easily finished both pizzas as they filled Coop in on what he had missed.

* * *

After dinner, the sisters sat at the table and worked at eliminating a few names from the list. As tired as they were, the sooner they figured this out, the sooner they could all safely return home. Paige read the pages in front of her closely before she finally spoke up.

"Red skin, blue eyes, dark-"

"No, next," Piper said crossing his name off the list in front of her. "Pruflas," Piper called out and Paige flipped to the pages dedicated to that demon.

"Causes men to lie, commit falsehood…clearly he was around back when I was dating," she joked looking for physical characteristics. "Usually appears in the form of a hawk or flames.

"Well that's not it," Piper said crossing off yet another name on the list. "Oriax," she continued forcing herself not to get discouraged.

"Guys, I found something," Phoebe called out from her seat as she read through the Book of Shadows.

"I thought you said there wasn't anything in there," Henry said and Phoebe shrugged.

"Well, not about a dark blue demon, but a green demon with claws…well not him either," she admitted as her sisters walked over. "But read this," she said gesturing to the book. It was a short entry that consisted of only a few lines and no picture.

Reading aloud Piper began, "A demon no one has identified, but is above upper level demons. No known potion or vanquishing spell. Defeat would consist only of banishing or containing it. Avoid contact."

"That was helpful," Paige muttered sarcastically and Piper had to agree.

"Well, it means someone went up against it and survived," Phoebe pointed out optimistically and Leo returned from putting the boys to bed in the nursery. When he saw the girls gathered around the book he hurried over.

"What did you find?" he asked curiously and Piper showed him the entry and he quickly read it to himself. "Sounds like it could be your guy," he said and Phoebe sighed. "I wonder who wrote this," Leo muttered almost to himself, but Piper already knew what he was thinking. If they could figure out who wrote it, they might be able to figure out when the demon originated.

"Well mom didn't write much in the book," Piper said her eyes never leaving the text on the page. "Usually Grams did it, but Grams would have written something more creative than this. Don't you think?" and Phoebe's eyes twinkled in amusement.

"Absolutely," she agreed, but then the mood turned sour quickly. "Which means this demon attacked even before Grams was alive," she said quietly.


	4. Chapter 4

**I hope you're enjoying the story. Please leave a review and let me know!**

Ch. 4

"What do we do now?" Phoebe asked as she gently closed the book. The realization that they were facing a demon that predated their grandmother's knowledge had left them silent.

"What we've been doing," Leo assured them and Piper nodded. "Keep researching. Paige, go back to the elders and see if they've heard anything since this afternoon," he suggested and she nodded and orbed off. "Coop, Henry, you two work on that pile of books there," he said pointing to a tall pile on the table that hadn't been finished yet. "Phoebe look for a locator spell or anything that would help us identify him," he gestured to the Book of Shadows and Phoebe nodded and opened the book back up. "Piper," he said turning to face her. "You go say goodnight to your boys," he said softly and she looked at him curiously. "Go," he insisted.

"But," she protested weakly as she glanced around the large library. "I should help."

"And you will, but your boys want to see you. So go say goodnight and then come back," he told her and she smiled slightly before she turned and headed off to the nursery. With a tired sigh Leo sank into a wooden chair at the table and grabbed the first book he saw. As he opened it, Henry grabbed it from his hands.

"Nope, this one's for you," he said trading books with him. Leo looked at him curiously before opening the book Henry had given him. Leo saw that it was entirely in Latin and chuckled quietly. "What?" Henry asked. "I don't read Latin!" Paige orbed in at that exact moment and Henry looked up.

"Well they still don't know anything, although they assured me that they feel we will be able to handle ourselves in any magical situation," she said with a skeptical look towards Leo. "Do they always say things like that just to get rid of us?" she asked and Leo shrugged.

"Usually," he admitted and Paige sat next to Henry. She grabbed a book and groaned audibly when she opened it. Without a word she shoved it towards Leo and Henry laughed out loud when he saw that it too was written in Latin.

"No wonder why these books were shoved in the back of the shelves," Paige muttered as she opened yet another ancient Latin text. At that moment, Piper walked back in and she could tell by their defeated postures that they had no new information.

"Hey Piper, you don't read Latin do you?" Henry asked and she gave him a confused look.

"No, why?" she asked and Leo sighed gesturing to the books that were in front of him.

"These are all in Latin and we don't have the English translations in this library," he explained before Henry jumped in.

"And your husband is the only one here who can read Latin," he said and Piper grinned at Leo's annoyed expression.

"Well, then get reading!" she encouraged and he shook his head wondering how long it would take him to read through every Latin book in the library.

"There is one thing we could do," Phoebe offered from her seat on the other side of the room. "But it might fall under personal gain," she admitted and Piper glared at her.

"When an all powerful demon is trying to kill us? No, I don't think so," she replied and nobody objected. "What is it?"

"We could get Billie to use her projection powers to translate the texts into English," she offered and Piper glanced at Leo and Paige who shrugged. It seemed like a good idea, and it would certainly speed up the research process.

"Let's do it," Piper agreed and Paige stood up.

"I'll go get her," she offered and only seconds later she returned with Billie who was surprised to see everyone together at Magic School.

"Okay, what's going on?" she asked, and Paige took a deep breath before they launched into the story.

* * *

"Why didn't you guys call me?" she yelled, annoyed that the sisters had excluded her from something so big. "I could have helped!"

"We didn't want you to get hurt," Piper said and Billie rolled her eyes. "And we thought the Power of Three could handle it," she admitted with a shrug and Billie sighed.

"Okay, so why am I here now?" she finally asked and Leo dropped all the books in front of her. She glanced down and then back up at him. "Yeah, I speak English," she replied and Paige smacked her lightly.

"We know," she said. "Use your power to translate them," she explained and Billie nodded. Shutting her eyes, Billie concentrated on the words on the pages in front of her, and in a few seconds everyone saw them transform into English.

"That's so cool," Henry commented grabbing one of the books as he flipped through to see that the entire thing was now in English.

"You should go now," Piper said to Billie who opened her mouth to protest. "No," Piper said firmly. "This demon may not know you're working with us, and you need to keep your distance. Go home. If we need you Paige will come get you," she assured her and Billie shook her head.

"No, I'm not going anywhere. I can help. I can-"

"Billie, we need you to go," Phoebe said speaking up for the first time since Billie had arrived.

"What? Why?" she asked and Phoebe sighed.

"Because if we don't make it through this and we aren't able to beat him," she whispered as her voice cracked slightly. "Someone needs to live through this to fight him," she explained and everyone remained silent as they let Phoebe's words sink in. Everyone had been thinking it for the entire day. It was the true reason why they hadn't included Billie in their plans. If the Power of Three couldn't vanquish this demon, Billie was the only other one who had a chance.

"Okay," she finally said softly, before grabbing Paige's hand. "I'll stay away," she conceded reluctantly. "Be careful," she whispered as her and Paige orbed out.

* * *

"He's not in here," Paige insisted as she reached the end of the book. "I can't find anything."

"Oriax?" Piper said again. "O-R-I-"

"Piper, you've spelled it four times. He's not in here," she repeated and Piper sighed. "Who else is on that list?" she asked gesturing to the list of demons they had made earlier that evening.

"Oriax is the only one we haven't ruled out based on physical appearance or the black blood," Piper responded and Paige looked at her excitedly.

"Then that's got to be our guy," she said and Piper shrugged.

"I'm starting to think our guy isn't in any of these books," she muttered. "We eliminated over thirty other demons. I'm sure as soon as we find Oriax we'll eliminate him too," she said discouraged as Paige slumped against the back of the couch. The rest of the group was still all the way across the room at the table reading through volumes of ancient texts. Piper stood up and walked towards them. "Are you guys having any luck?" she asked as she placed a hand on Leo's shoulder.

Shaking his head Leo sighed heavily. "No, nothing we didn't already know," he told her and Coop glanced at Phoebe. He could tell she was tired and shut the book that was open in front of her.

"We should all get some rest," he offered and Phoebe looked at him and opened her mouth to protest.

"He's right," Piper said surprising everyone. "Even if we do find something there's nothing we can do about it tonight," she pointed out. "We'll fight better tomorrow, and not sleeping isn't going to help us," she said and Leo nodded in agreement.

"How's the list going?" he asked and Piper shrugged.

"We eliminated all but one demon, but as soon as we find information on him I think we'll eliminate him too. It was a dead end," she told him and everyone at the table stood up not surprised by Piper's news. "Maybe tomorrow we'll have more luck," she said forcing herself to sound hopeful.

* * *

The next morning all six of them gathered in the library and looked at each other wondering what was going to be different about today. None of them had slept very well knowing that a demon had literally run them out of their homes and out of their world. They were safe at Magic School, but they all knew it wasn't a permanent solution. Tomorrow was Monday and students would be back using the library. If they wanted to keep this new demonic attack quiet, they would have to finish their research and plan their attack today.

"Phoebe, Coop, why don't you two start putting away the books we've already finished with?" Piper suggested as she looked around and saw dozens of books lying around. It was a wonder they had gotten anything accomplished at all in such a mess. "The rest of us will start working on finishing everything else."

"Okay," Phoebe agreed, relieved that she didn't have to start the morning doing research. After all the reading she'd done yesterday, even cleanup was better than more research. She picked up a stack of books and walked to a nearby bookshelf when a large leather-bound book caught her eye. It was one of the biggest books on the shelf, and she wondered why nobody had thought it was important. Out of curiosity, she pulled it out and glanced at the title. She smiled to herself as she read _Belthazor's Battle Behavior_. She supposed they didn't need to do any more research on him. She returned the book to its position on the shelf, and two more next to it caught her eye. She grabbed them and read the titles as well. _Cole Turner or Belthazor: Man or Demon?_ and _Man, Demon, Source, Avatar: The Most Decorated Being of the Underworld._ She continued to look at the shelf and realized that the entire section was dedicated to Cole.

"Leo?" Phoebe called from where she was standing and Leo immediately recognized the section. Standing up quickly, he walked over to her and took the books from her hands. He put them back on the shelf and casually positioned himself between Phoebe and the bookshelf. "Would you care to explain this?" she asked and Leo sighed.

"I proposed a new elective class for students," he admitted and Phoebe glared at him wondering why he hadn't felt comfortable telling her.

"On Cole," she stated rather than asked, and Leo shrugged.

"On Belthazor," he corrected, and Phoebe shook her head.

"You could have told me," she said quietly as she handed the rest of the books in her hands to Leo. "I've moved on," she assured him. "It's just times like this, when my own family doesn't believe that I have, that makes it difficult," she whispered before sitting down at the table next to Paige and Piper.

Coop had been able to see, but not hear, the exchange between Phoebe and Leo, and he walked over to Leo to see what had happened. When he read some of the titles of the books Leo was in front of his heart sank. It didn't take a genius to figure out what had upset Phoebe.

"He's gone, Coop," Leo assured him and Coop gave a sad smile and nodded.

"To everyone but her," he agreed before walking away to finish organizing the books.

* * *

"I think I found something," Piper finally spoke up as everyone's eyes at the table looked up at her expectantly. "It's on the last demon from our list. He can take on different physical forms and in each different form he has different powers and strengths," she read and Phoebe and Paige stood up and walked behind her so they could read with her.

"That would explain why you could freeze the green one," Paige commented and Phoebe nodded. "And why there's no physical description here."

"What else does it say?" Leo asked his curiosity now piqued. They were finally getting somewhere.

"His wounds heal almost instantaneously because his dark blood has self healing properties," Piper said and everyone looked up excitedly.

"That's got to be him, then right?" Henry asked as he too stood up to be next to Paige. "I mean, we've looked into everything else. This is all that's left."

"Does it give a name?" Leo questioned and Piper nodded.

"Oriax," she answered and she looked up to see all the blood drain from Leo's face. "Leo?" she asked worriedly.

"Leo, what's wrong?" Phoebe asked and Leo blinked and shook his head.

"Oriax," he repeated as he sat down in disbelief. "I thought he was a legend."


	5. Chapter 5

Ch. 5

"Is there a vanquishing pot-" Paige began but was quickly cut off by Leo.

"There won't be," he said standing up. "Oriax can't be vanquished. Nobody's ever done it," he explained speaking quickly. "We have to move fast."

"Leo, what's going on?" Piper asked as she saw the fear in her husband's face.

Ignoring her questions Leo responded, "Piper, go get the boys from the nursery. We can't leave them alone." Piper looked at him strangely wondering what he wasn't telling them.

"Leo, this is Magic School. Demons can't get in here," she reminded him and Leo shook his head.

"If any demon can it's Oriax. And he's had a whole day to work out how," he told her and Piper could see him fighting off panic. His jaw was set, and as his eyes met hers she could realize how worried he was. "Go get the boys," he insisted in a low, even tone that instantly communicated to Piper how serious this was. She immediately headed for the nursery without another word of protest. "Paige, go tell the elders it's Oriax," Leo told her and she nodded and began to orb. "Paige!" he called stopping her and she returned quickly. "Don't go anywhere else," he stressed and she nodded. "I mean it. Go straight there, come straight back."

"Okay, Leo," she promised and orbed off leaving Phoebe, Coop, and Henry very confused. The tone of Leo's voice was enough for them all to realize that this was a serious situation, and the look on his face was doing nothing to encourage them of their chances of survival. A few seconds later, Piper returned with the boys. She placed Wyatt and Chris in a playpen in the corner before walking to the others.

"Where's Paige?" she asked concerned before Phoebe answered.

"Up there," she assured her and Piper nodded in understanding.

"We can't stay here," Leo said and everyone turned to look at him. "It's not safe, and the longer Oriax tries to get here the easier it will be for him to do just that," he explained and Coop sighed to himself. He'd thought they would be safe here for as long as necessary. It never occurred to him that a demon could take over the school when the Charmed Ones were still there.

"I thought this place was protected," Coop said and Leo looked at him guiltily.

"It is. From most demons, but Oriax isn't just an ordinary demon," he said as Paige returned.

"When I said it was Oriax they all got that same look as Leo," she said gesturing to the terrified look that Leo was trying desperately not to show. Turning to Leo she said, "They said you would explain and that I shouldn't leave you guys without a whitelighter for long if Oriax was after us."

"They're right," he agreed walking around to the other side of the table. "Oriax was always said to be THE most powerful being ever. Above the Source, the Triad, Billie and Christy…" he trailed off obviously not wanting to finish his statement but Piper finished it for him.

"And us," she added bluntly and Leo didn't deny it. "So why hasn't he attacked until now?" she asked narrowing her eyes slightly, and Leo sighed.

"A long time ago, a group of witches banded together to banish him and they succeeded," he explained and Paige looked at him hopefully.

"So why can't we just do that again?" she asked, and Leo opened his mouth to answer but remained silent for a few moments before answering.

"It took over a dozen witches and only one of them survived," he finally told them and the sisters all shared a knowing look. They had been in important battles before where the fate of the world hung in the balance, but this was going to be the fight of their lives. "Now you're more powerful than all of them, but they also had the…" he trailed off again and this time Phoebe jumped in.

"The what, Leo?" she asked and Leo looked at her surprised that she was already losing her patience.

"The nexus," he answered reluctantly. "It took their power combined with that of the nexus to banish and contain Oriax," he explained and Piper groaned.

"And when we destroyed the nexus we destroyed some of the power that was containing him," she finished for him as Leo nodded. "Great," she said sarcastically. "And nobody thought to mention this BEFORE we destroyed the nexus!" she exclaimed and Leo shrugged.

"We, or they," he corrected as he glanced upwards, "thought it was a legend," he said sheepishly and Phoebe glared at him.

"Just like the Charmed Ones were a legend?" she asked pointedly and Leo sighed knowing she had a point.

"Look, only the most highest ranking Elders know about Oriax," he explained and they looked at him waiting for him to elaborate. "If the surviving witch had written an account of the attack, and evil had ever gotten their hands on it, they could have potentially used to it free Oriax," he pointed out and all three sisters knew that he was right.

"So how do we vanquish him?" Piper finally asked and Leo looked at her helplessly. "Or banish him or contain him?" she asked and Leo shook his head.

"The only way is by tapping into the power of the nexus," he said and Paige rolled her eyes.

"But the nexus is gone and we can't just let him kill us," she said tipping her head to the side for emphasis and Henry had to agree. "Nobody ever tried the Power of Three. We could try," she offered but Piper immediately shook her head.

"No. If our individual powers had no effect on him, then the Power of Three won't be able to vanquish or banish him. Leo's right. We need more power," she said and the sisters looked at her already sensing that she had an idea. "What about the Hollow?" she asked and this time Leo shook his head.

"It's too risky," he said and they had to agree that there was a great deal of risk involved. "We don't have anyone on the other side to work with, and I don't even think the Hollow is powerful enough to defeat Oriax," he admitted and Coop bit his lip. He had never heard of anything more powerful than the Hollow, and the fact that Phoebe and her sisters were going to have to fight it was less than appealing to him. "If the Hollow was an option, someone would have tried it before," Leo pointed out and the sisters silently agreed.

"How long do you think he's been free?" Phoebe asked wondering how long he'd had to plan his attack. At this line of questioning Leo's mood seemed to improve.

"Probably not long," he said his eyes brightly slightly. "Which is good. The longer he's out there, the more time he has to learn and gain more power and control."

"How do you know he hasn't been free for very long?" Coop asked and Piper was nice enough to answer.

"Because if he'd been free for longer he would have tried to kill us by now," she explained and Coop remained quiet as all six of them stood there quietly. The only sounds in the room were Wyatt and Chris playing in the corner, oblivious to the new power that was out there.

"We should call Billie," Paige finally said as five sets of eyes turned to look at her. "If nothing else, she should know who it is we're fighting," she explained and when Piper and Phoebe nodded silently, Paige orbed out and nobody said a word while she was gone. When they returned, Billie immediately knew something was wrong.

"What's wrong?" she asked and Coop snorted bitterly.

"We're all going to die," he muttered and Phoebe shot him a look that immediately silenced him before Paige began the story.

"Oriax. Demon that can only be banished with the power of the nexus which WE, being the ever so powerful Charmed Ones, destroyed in order to save the world from Zankou," she quickly relayed the events of the morning to Billie who nodded, understanding immediately.

"So, say we DID still have the nexus," she said and Piper opened her mouth to argue but Billie spoke louder to stop her. "Say we did," she continued, "would we be able to banish him then?"

"Most likely," Leo answered and Billie took a deep breath.

"Then we need to restore the nexus," she said simply and Phoebe shook her head always finding it refreshing how youthful Billie was. She never gave up even when things were literally impossible.

"We can't do that, Billie," Phoebe said and Billie shrugged.

"We'll find a way. What if I used my power to go back to before you guys destroyed it?" she proposed and the sisters and Leo considered it before all dismissing it.

"Too risky," Piper said. "We'd change the past and then who knows where we'd be now," she pointed out. "The Triad may still be here and Christy…" she trailed off knowing that she didn't need to continue giving reasons for not using Billie's power to prevent them from having ever destroyed the nexus. "We need to recapture the nexus' power a different way."

"A spell?" Coop offered feeling guilty for his earlier comment. "Potion?"

"Maybe both? Combined with the Power of Three?" Billie suggested and Piper shrugged.

"I'm not sure what other choice we have," she admitted with a sigh. "Between all of us we should be able to come up with something to try," she said and everyone else nodded before turning to her for directions.

"I'll work on a spell to restore the nexus," Phoebe offered anticipating what Piper was going to say. "It might take a while," she admitted knowing that writing a spell for the impossible wouldn't be an easy task.

"Just try, Phoebe," Piper encouraged, and Phoebe was already grabbing paper to do just that. "Paige, I need you to find a safe place for the boys, Leo, Coop, and Henry to go. If Oriax can get to Magic School, they're not safe here," Piper said and Paige nodded grimly. "And we have to assume that Oriax can sense them, so we'll need some sort of cloaking or masking aspect to whatever magic we use," she said and Paige headed in the direction of the Book of Shadows. "I'll work on the potion to reopen the nexus," she said knowing it was the most difficult task before she turned to Billie. "I need you to work on making a more powerful stun potion than the one we already have."

"Okay," Billie agreed walking over to where she saw they were keeping the potion ingredients. "I'll make one to bring you guys here right away too in case you need a quick escape and Paige is, um…" she trailed off not wanting to finish the sentence but Piper nodded.

"Good idea," she assured her but then thought better of it. "But you better make the potion take us somewhere else in case Oriax can get in here," she said quietly still in disbelief that there was a demon powerful enough to overcome the protection of Magic School. "And make one for yourself too," she said and Billie looked at her hopefully.

"Piper, are you sure?" she asked knowing that for Piper to be bringing Billie along and admitting that the sisters couldn't handle it themselves, was a huge testament to Oriax's power. Piper didn't like to include Billie because she didn't like her routine interrupted. The three of them had established a system of demon fighting, and Billie disrupted that system. Despite her power, Billie didn't fit in to the Power of Three. Billie was a distraction to the Charmed Ones, so Piper tried to keep Billie at arm's length when magic was involved. If Piper was asking for her to come along, it meant that she didn't think the three of them would be able to do it alone.

"We'll need your help," she admitted. Finally she turned to Leo, Henry, and Coop. "See if there's more information in any of these books on nexus power or Oriax. We'll need everything we can get if we're going to pull this off," she said, her voice sounding much more sure of herself than she actually was. Walking over to meet Billie at the potions table, she stopped when she heard Leo's voice.

"Piper," he said and she turned to face him. "How are you going to fight off Oriax long enough for the three of you to be able to say the spell to restore the nexus and then another one to banish him?" he asked and Piper sighed.

"Let's just see if we can find a way to restore the nexus before we worry about that," she replied and Leo knew that she was already preparing herself for the worst. With a lump in his throat, Leo turned to Henry and Coop and led them back to the bookshelves where it seemed they spent most of their time nowadays.

* * *

"Anything?" Phoebe asked as she walked over to Coop and Leo. "I finished the spell," she said wishing she felt more confident in it.

"We didn't find anything on the nexus," Leo told her and she sat next to Coop who grabbed her hand in encouragement. "But we did think of a place where us guys can go while you fight Oriax," he said and Phoebe perked up.

"Your dad's," Coop said and Phoebe's eyes brightened slightly. "But Leo said we can't orb there in case Oriax can track Paige's orbs," he told her and Phoebe sighed knowing what that meant.

"I'll go work on a potion to bring you guys there," she said and Coop grabbed her hand and pulled her back down to the chair.

"Billie's already working on it," Leo assured her and Phoebe let out a sigh of relief. "All of us will go to Victor's with the potion and then you'll use a potion to go to the manor from there," Leo explained and Phoebe nodded in silent agreement. "Hopefully you'll be able to surprise Oriax and get an edge."

"And that potion is done!" Billie announced placing ten identical potion vials on the table in front of Phoebe. "These will take whoever uses them to your dad's apartment," Billie told her and Phoebe looked at her questioningly.

"Why are there so many?" she asked and Billie stole a glance at Leo who nodded slightly before Billie answered.

"Well, one's for Coop, one's for Henry, one's for Leo and the boys, then there's four for the four of us," she explained and Phoebe continued looking at her expectantly. "And the other three are for the three of us to leave since Paige won't need one afterwards," she said but Phoebe looked from her to Leo before finally asking what deep down she already knew the answer to.

"Why couldn't Paige just orb us all back to dad's after?" she asked and Billie opened her mouth to answer but Leo jumped in.

"It's just a precaution. Now you all have your own method of transportation," he said and Phoebe nodded knowing it was the smart thing to do. "It's just strategy Phoebe," he promised and she nodded again before silently getting up and walking over to Paige and Piper.

"Do you need any help with the potions?" she asked them quietly and Piper looked at her. Seeing the look on her face, Piper could tell that the weight of the situation was hitting Phoebe.

"Sure," she said handing a vial to Phoebe. "This one will take us from dad's to the manor," she explained. "And then I'd like you to look at our potions for the nexus and Oriax," she said and Phoebe nodded taking a deep breath. It was time to get back in the game. "Just to check," Piper assured her. "Everything will be fine," she promised and Phoebe and Paige both nodded despite the fact that they all knew that the chances of them all making it out of the manor alive were slim to none.

**Okay, so next up: the big battle...or the first big battle at least. ;) I intend to have many in the story. Please, please leave a review and let me know if you're enjoying it. Any feedback or comments would be helpful even if it was just to let me know you're reading. I haven't ever posted a story on this site before so I'm not sure what is an average amount of reviews, but they're so helpful I love to get them!**


	6. Chapter 6

**It was brought to my attention that I had uploaded chapter 4 twice instead of uploading chapter 5. I fixed the problem, but make sure you read chapter 5 before you read this!**

Ch. 6

"Hi Dad," Piper said with a small smile as everyone arrived in clouds of light blue smoke. Looking up from the newspaper, Victor did a double take as he saw so many people in his living room. "We have a situation," she told him and Victor stood up and walked towards them.

"Is everything okay?" he asked concerned, and Phoebe smiled at him while giving him a tight hug.

"We love you Daddy," she whispered, and Victor knew that whatever was going on wasn't good.

"Girls, what's wrong?" he asked, trying to keep the panic out of his voice for the sake of Wyatt and Chris. "Leo?" he asked as he had come to rely on him to explain some of the magical situations that his daughters glossed over.

"Dad," Piper said forcing the tears out of her voice. "Everything's fine," she lied, and Victor shook his head.

"Piper, I know my girls and everything is NOT fine," he told her before hugging her tightly. "Why is everyone here? And how did you get here? Why didn't you orb?" he asked speeding up with each question as Piper sighed and took a step back. "Or use Coop's ring?"

"There's a very powerful demon," she explained and Victor stared at her waiting for her to continue. "He might be able to track our orbs and we want to make sure he doesn't try to get into Magic School," she told him. "This was the only safe place for everyone to stay while…"

"While what?" Victor asked already knowing the answer. "While you girls go fight?" he asked angrily and Piper cleared her throat to keep herself from crying.

"Dad, this is what we need to do," she insisted and Victor saw the determination on his daughters' faces. "And I'm sorry," she stressed, her voice dropping to a whisper. "That you have to go through this again, but there's no way around it."

"Dad," Phoebe said as he felt the sting of tears in his eyes. "We'll come back, okay?" she said, yet they all knew it was a promise she may not be able to keep.

"Take care of the family, Dad," Piper whispered as she kissed him on the cheek and hugged him tightly.

"I won't lose another daughter," he insisted as Piper pulled away and nodded.

"You won't Daddy," Phoebe assured him as he hugged her next. "You won't get rid of us that easily," she said and they could hear Chris fussing and reaching for Victor. Phoebe pulled away and Leo handed Chris over to Victor. Before Piper could back away, she felt a few tears slide down her cheeks and she placed a kiss on the top of Chris' head.

"I love you," she whispered in his ear and Victor handed Chris to his mother so they could say a hopefully unnecessary goodbye. "Wyatt, come here," she said reaching her hand out as Wyatt walked over and placed his hand in hers. Walking to the far side of the room, she waited until they were both seated on the floor and bent down to their level.

"Mama?" Wyatt questioned softly, and Piper quickly wiped away her tears. He could sense that something was happening, but was too young to understand what.

"I love you both SO much," she told them placing one hand on each of their faces. "No matter what happens, I'll always be with you and watching over you, okay?" she asked her voice cracking and Wyatt nodded as he began to grasp that his mother needed assurance. "It's going to be okay," she said as she reached out and hugged them both. Four small arms wrapped around her neck, and although Leo had wanted to give Piper privacy to say her own goodbyes, he couldn't stay away from his family anymore. He walked over and bent down as he placed his arm around Piper's waist. She glanced up at him, and as their eyes met she felt her body begin to shake slightly with her tears.

She pulled back from Wyatt and Chris not wanting them to realize how afraid she was. With one final kiss to both of them, she stood up and Leo followed suit. Without another word, she buried her face in Leo's chest as he held her close to him.

"It doesn't get easier, Leo," she whispered and he felt a few tears fall from his eyes.

"No it doesn't," he agreed as he buried his face in her hair. "I'll take care of them," he promised knowing that was what she needed to hear, and she nodded appreciatively. She stepped back so she could meet his eyes, but she felt her heart breaking all over again as she saw how much this was hurting him too. "But don't make me do it alone," he whispered, his voice breaking. Rather than answering, she pulled his lips to hers for the type of kiss that was becoming far too familiar for them. His fingers tangled in her hair as they desperately tried to communicate how they felt about each other through that one kiss. Leo could taste Piper's tears as they fell down her face until she reluctantly pulled away. Resting his forehead against hers, he gave her one last, soft kiss.

"I don't want to leave you," she admitted and his hands came up to rest on either side of her face.

"Then don't," he insisted as his breath caught in his throat. "Come back to me and your boys," he begged resting his forehead against hers. "I love you."

"I love you too," she assured him. "Always," she promised as she gave him one last soft kiss before grabbing his hands and leading him back to the group.

As they made their way over, Paige and Phoebe headed towards Wyatt and Chris. They bent down and Wyatt immediately hugged both of them at the same time. Phoebe let out a soft sob at the gesture and wrapped her arms around the little boy.

"I love you, Wyatt," Phoebe managed to choke out. "You're going to do amazing things," she murmured in his ear before reluctantly handing him over to her sister. Paige hugged him tightly and repeated Phoebe's statement. Phoebe picked up Chris who curled into her body finally starting to get scared now that all the adults he trusted were crying. "And I love you too, Chris," she promised forcing herself to calm down so she wouldn't upset Chris further. She kissed him before handing him to Paige and walking over to Coop.

Without a word, she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. He pulled her close and shut his eyes, trying to memorize the feel of her body against his. Pulling back he kissed her deeply, ignoring all the other people in the room.

"Don't leave me, Phoebe," he whispered against her lips and she shook her head.

"I won't," she promised for what seemed like the hundredth time. A sad smile crossed Coop's face and he ran a hand through Phoebe's hair.

"And to think I almost surprised you with a romantic getaway this weekend," he muttered and Phoebe smiled slightly.

"Next weekend," she whispered and Coop nodded before hugging her again.

"Next weekend," he repeated hopefully.

* * *

Henry forced himself to put on a brave face as he saw Paige wiping away tears after saying goodbye to her nephews. Out of the corner of her eye, he saw Billie walking over to the two boys, but his focus was on Paige.

"We should probably be better at this by now, huh?" she tried to joke and he allowed her to by smiling slightly. He grabbed her hand and laced his fingers through hers. Her eyes fell to their hands for a moment before meeting his again. "I'm not going to say goodbye," she finally said and he smiled.

"Because you're coming back," he agreed and Paige nodded, grateful that he understood. "And I know you will," he told her as he pulled her into his arms. "And when you do, I'll be waiting for you," he promised.

"Thank you," Paige whispered into his ear as she kept her arms wrapped tightly around him. "For letting me do this and for understanding why I have to," she continued and Henry felt a lump forming in his throat. They had only just started their life together…he couldn't lose her now.

"Just…come back to me, Paige," he whispered emotionally and Paige squeezed her eyes shut as tears leaked out. "Please. I love you."

"I love you too," she said before pulling back and kissing him tenderly. "More than anything," she whispered against his mouth. Taking a deep breath, she pulled back and grabbed his hand. Giving it a reassuring squeeze she smiled. "I'll be back," she said before hesitantly walking away.

After a few silent moments as everyone finished saying goodbye, the four witches stood in the center of the room. Leo was holding Chris and Victor had taken Wyatt. Coop and Henry stood on either side of them as they all watched the women they loved go off to fight the most dangerous battle of their lives.

Phoebe's eyes caught sight of the Book of Shadows lying on the coffee table, and she suddenly felt angry. Nobody else had ever vanquished this demon or even provided a theory as for how to try. Instead, their Book of Shadows had yielded no clues, and the Elders resorted to an old story they had never believed to be true. Well, the Charmed Ones had made history before. They were just going to have to do it again.

"Come on," Phoebe said with a new motivation. "Let's finish this," she told them before Billie handed the potions out to each of the sisters. With a deep breath, they readied themselves to throw the vials.

"Girls!" Victor suddenly said before they threw the potions. They looked at him and he briefly shut his eyes to compose himself. "Good luck. And be careful," he said. "All of you," he added looking at Paige and Billie who nodded appreciatively. Without another word, all four of them threw the potions and disappeared from Victor's living room.

* * *

Silently they arrived in the manor and tentatively began walking towards the basement. They got to the kitchen without incident, but before they reached the basement door, they saw a demon suddenly flame in right in front of them. This time the demon was green and blue, a combination of its previous colors and it had claws and teeth. Without stopping to think, Paige threw the stun potion she was holding in her hand. Unlike the last time, Oriax waved his hand and the potion flew back and broke in front of Paige.

The other three witches stared in surprise as Paige stood paralyzed by the effects of her own potion. Piper instinctively tried to blow up Oriax, but he sneered at them as her powers had no effect whatsoever. Piper tried freezing the demon which only slowed him down, but did allow Billie to throw an athame straight at his heart. The blade lodged itself deeply in Oriax's skin, and he let out an angry growl. Slowly they could see Paige coming around from the potion, and they grabbed her arms rushing her towards the basement door. They had to get there to say the spell to restore the nexus.

"Come on, Paige," Phoebe urged as they neared the door. Billie rushed after them and flung her hand out to throw Oriax across the room. To her surprise, he only staggered back slightly and recovered immediately. In response, he conjured a fireball and threw it at her, but she put her hand up to redirect it back at him. It hit Oriax squarely in the chest which slowed him down long enough to allow the Charmed Ones to get to the door.

They flung it open and hurried down the stairs. Having now recovered from the potion, Paige ran behind her sisters. Back in the kitchen, Oriax shook off the effects of his own fireball and telekinetically threw Billie over the island in the kitchen. Rushing after the sisters, he saw them on the basement stairs. With a loud roar he shoved his hands forward which pushed the three witches, causing them to fall down the rest of the wooden stairs.

Phoebe, having been nearly at the bottom, stood up quickly and was relieved to see Billie stabbing Oriax with a sharp knife she'd found in the kitchen. While he was distracted, Phoebe grabbed Piper and helped her stand. Piper tested her ankles as she stood, and determined nothing was too badly injured. They quickly turned to Paige who was struggling to stand on her own two feet. She had been less than halfway down the stairs and they knew she had fallen a long way.

Phoebe reached into Paige's pocket and pulled out the spell and shoved it in her hands. While she did that, Piper threw the potion that was supposed to open the earth where the nexus used to be in order for it to accept the magic. Leaning against both of her sisters, Paige grabbed each of their hands as they started to read the spell.

_"Used only for good now never against_

_Ancient magic greater than the rest_

_Power from under the manor restore_

_Return now to its original form."_

The sisters finished the spell, and within seconds the floor began to crack and they backed up closer to the stairs. A loud rumbling noise came from under the floor at the same time that they heard a crash from the kitchen.

"We have to help Billie," Piper said rushing off and up the stairs. Phoebe and Paige followed looking over their shoulders to see a bright white light coming from the basement floor. The spell was working.

As Piper reached the kitchen, she saw the walls were cracked and knives and dishes were strewn all over the floor. Oriax and Billie were nowhere to be found, so she hurried off towards the dining room where she could hear them both fighting. When she got there, she immediately threw her hands in the air to try and blow up the demon.

"Piper, no!" Billie screamed having already discovered what Piper was about to learn. Oriax deflected her power and redirected it back towards her. Piper felt the full effects of her own power as her body screamed in pain. She couldn't move or fight the effects of her exploding power, and Oriax threw a large fireball towards her. Billie immediately shoved the fireball away from Piper when Paige and Phoebe showed up. "Don't use your powers against him," Billie told them and Paige orbed behind him hoping to distract him.

"Hey!" she yelled and he turned while Phoebe threw the stun potion while he was looking away. The potion worked only to slow him down, but it was enough to allow Piper, Phoebe, Paige, and Billie to rush until they were next to each other and therefore less vulnerable. With a furious scream, he rushed towards them. Billie tried to shove him using her power, but he was too strong. When he got close Phoebe kicked him, but Oriax showed no signs of feeling it. Instead he threw four fireballs which Piper froze, but Oriax immediately unfroze. They flew towards the sisters, and Billie didn't have time to deflect them all. She redirected the ones in front of her, Phoebe, and Piper, but she couldn't get to all four of them. Paige was hit in the stomach, but she orbed away before it did too much damage.

"Paige?" Phoebe asked concerned, but looked and realized that Paige was barely burned from the attack. "The basement," Phoebe said knowing they had to get him close to the nexus to say the banishing spell. Piper led the way hoping to lure the demon there, but before she even got out of the dining room Oriax flamed out. The four witches looked around knowing he hadn't left. He had been winning…

Suddenly he flamed back in directly behind Piper, and she felt five of his claws sink deeply into her back penetrating all the way through her stomach. She fell to the floor and was almost immediately surrounded by a pool of her own blood. Paige hurriedly orbed towards her knowing that her sister couldn't survive that much blood loss for very long.

"Paige, wait!" Phoebe yelled as Oriax proceeded to jump the orb. Billie and Phoebe waited in fear until the two figures reappeared. Paige fell onto the dining room table with a loud thud and they realized she was unconscious. They could see cuts from Oriax's claws, but also deep bite marks on Paige's neck from his teeth. She too was losing a lot of blood, and Phoebe and Billie knew they were beaten. "Billie, get Piper!" she demanded before she herself rushed over to Paige. Each of them grabbing a sister, they threw the potion to bring them back to Victor's apartment.

**Please leave a review and let me know what you think. They're so helpful! I'll do my best to have another update done by tomorrow night. **


	7. Chapter 7

**This is the last chapter I had written before I started posting this story. So reviews would really help me determine the direction you guys want me to go in the future. I do know what I want to happen, but if the readers want something different as the story progresses I could go in a different direction. **

**Keep in mind, this will eventually become, in addition to the action/drama, a romance story as well. I can't tell you what pairing(s) because it will give away way too much of the story, but I think a lot of you will be happy with it. And there might just be a couple other pairings that aren't as...obvious ;) But Leo and Piper will stay together, I promise. I think they've been through enough throughout their eight years. If you have any thoughts on a pairing you'd like to see, leave a review and I can try to work it in!**

**Anyways, I think this chapter really starts moving things along in the story. Let me know what you think!  
**

Ch. 7

"I need the Book!" Phoebe screamed frantically the second she arrived in her father's apartment. Her hands were shaking as tears formed in her eyes. Paige and Piper were seconds away from death, and Phoebe was the only one who could save them.

"Oh my God," Henry whispered as he bent down next to Paige. "What do we do?" he asked Phoebe as Billie waved her hand sending the book flying until it settled next to Phoebe.

"The power switching spell," Phoebe said as she opened the Book and let out a sigh of relief as the pages flipped automatically before settling on the spell.

"Phoebe, you won't have time to save them both!" Leo cried out from where he had settled beside Piper. He shoved his hands against the wounds that went from Piper's back to her stomach, but the blood continued to spill out. "Piper's dying," he whispered as tears spilled from his eyes.

"It's the only way, Leo," Phoebe replied just as emotionally. Glancing at the book, she clutched Paige's hand before saying the spell through her tears.

_"What's mine is yours_

_What's yours is mine_

_Let our powers cross the line_

_I offer up this gift to share_

_Switch our powers through the air."_

"Stay with me, Piper," Leo begged, not even bothering to watch the effects of the spell. He removed one of his hands from her stomach and gathered her in his arms. Pulling her against his body he held her as close to him as possible. "Please, Baby. Don't leave me now," he whimpered leaning down to kiss her forehead. "Not after everything we've been through," he said through his tears as he felt Piper's pulse weakening. It was times like this that he hated being mortal. If only he was still a whitelighter…

Victor clutched Chris as he saw one of his daughters bleeding to death and the other trying to save both of her sisters. Tears stung his eyes, but he refused to give up hope. Magic would save them. It had to.

* * *

"Phoebe, hurry," Henry urged tearfully and Phoebe nodded with a short sob, unable to say anything at that moment. Paige's wounds were glowing as Phoebe healed her, but Paige had been an inch from death. Every time Phoebe let herself feel relieved about Paige, she remembered Piper bleeding on the other side of the room. The reality of the situation told her that one…or both of her sisters were going to die. But she had to keep fighting. That was what they would want her to do.

* * *

"Piper," Leo whispered as he hugged her body to his. He was going to lose her. After everything they had gone through as a couple, he was going to lose her to one demon that had ripped her open.

Suddenly he saw white orbs appear in front of him on the other side of Piper. He glanced up to see Wyatt, and Leo quickly tried to hide the fact that he'd been crying.

"Wyatt, g-go see Grandpa," he urged not wanting his son to watch his mother die.

"Wyatt, sweetie, come here," Billie said as she hurried over to take him back to Victor. Before she could reach him, Wyatt sat down and hugged his mom as she lay motionless on the floor. His tiny hands hovered over a cut on her upper back and it began to glow.

"Wyatt," Leo breathed in awe. "Wyatt," he whispered again as that one cut on Piper healed. Gently, Leo took Wyatt's hands and held them over the largest cut on Piper's stomach. Wyatt looked at his father in uncertainty and Leo nodded. "Just love your mom," he urged and Wyatt looked back down at Piper.

* * *

"Come on, Paige," Phoebe begged as her breath caught in her throat. She was desperate to heal Paige, and even more desperate to get to Piper. "Come on!" she repeated as her hands began to shake. Tears fell down her face, but she refused to move her hands to wipe them away. She felt Coop kneel next to her and grab her hand. Glancing at him curiously he gestured back towards Paige.

"Love is the trigger," he reminded her and she realized what he was thinking. "I can help you with that," he told her and Phoebe refocused her attention on Paige.

* * *

"That's it, Wyatt," Leo encouraged as he began to see Piper's cuts healing. It was a slow process with Piper's severe injuries and Wyatt still learning his power, but there was a chance it could work. "You can do it," he whispered hopefully. Leo watched as Piper's cuts glowed before slowly closing, and he let a smile appear on his face. "Just keep it up, Buddy," he said as Piper's cuts began healing faster as Wyatt started to understand his power.

* * *

With Coop enhancing her ability to channel her love, Phoebe continued to heal Paige. After what seemed like hours, Paige's eyes opened and she sat up, fully healed. Henry hugged her tightly and Phoebe let out a sigh of relief before reality hit and she scrambled over to Piper.

"Mommy?" Wyatt asked as Piper took a deep breath and her wounds healed completely.

"Wyatt?" she asked curiously as she glanced around to see Leo and Wyatt staring down at her. "What happened?"

"Your son just healed you," Leo said proudly and Piper took in the sight of his shirt covered in her blood and she turned to Wyatt. Grabbing him, she hugged him tightly.

"You're such a good boy," she whispered and Leo smiled at the sight before him. "Thank you for saving Mommy," she told him as she pulled back to look at his face. He didn't seem to understand the gravity of the situation and Piper kissed him on the top of the head. "I love you."

"I love you too," Wyatt said and Piper smiled against her son's head of hair. Suddenly Piper's arms were empty as Wyatt orbed away and back to the playpen with Chris and his toys. She laughed and felt relieved that her son didn't seem traumatized from nearly watching his mother die.

"Piper?" Phoebe cried out desperately and she began to sob as she saw that Piper was alive. "What? How?" she asked and both Leo and Piper smiled proudly.

"Wyatt," Leo replied and Phoebe threw her arms around Piper.

"I thought I was going to lose both my sisters," she whispered and Piper looked at her with concern.

"What happened to Paige?" she asked immediately, but relaxed when she saw Paige standing next to Henry across the room.

"Oriax got to her too. I had to switch powers and heal her," Phoebe explained quickly. "I wasn't going to have time to heal both of you," she whimpered feeling guilty for choosing Paige over Piper. "But I had to switch powers with Paige and I was already next to her so I just started-"

"Phoebe, it's okay. You did the right thing," Piper assured her and Phoebe let out a sigh of relief. "Everyone is okay," she soothed and Phoebe nodded before she felt Coop's hand on her shoulder. Standing up, she turned and buried her face in his chest.

"We should get you cleaned up," Piper said to Leo who was still staring at her in amazement. "I don't want Wyatt or Chris to see-" before she could finish, Leo's lips were on hers and she could taste his lingering tears. Pulling away he hugged her close.

"I thought I lost you," he whispered and Piper sighed softly as she hugged him back. "I can't lose you Piper."

"You won't," she said, a new sense of determination in her voice that didn't go unnoticed by Leo. "Now let's clean up, compare notes, and figure out what to do next."

* * *

"No wonder why you made us switch powers back so fast, Phoebe," Paige said wryly. "This is a ridiculous amount of people to orb," she muttered as she stood in Victor's living room connected to Piper, Phoebe, Henry, Coop, Leo, Wyatt, Chris, Billie, and Victor.

"Well if Oriax sensed you were in the manor even when you used the potions, it means he wasn't tracking your orbs," Leo pointed out and Paige sighed. "So he can sense you girls wherever you are. it's still safest to orb into Magic School."

"Magic School it is," Paige agreed before they all orbed into the Magic School library.

"Dad, why don't you take the boys to the nursery," Piper suggested knowing that her father wasn't always comfortable dealing with the magical aspects of their lives. "And make sure Wyatt's okay with everything that happened," she added and he nodded grateful to be assigned a task he could handle. He left the library with both boys, and Piper turned back to the rest of the group.

"So what the hell happened back there?" Henry finally asked and Paige smiled at his bluntness.

"Did it work?" Coop asked and Phoebe could tell that he was holding back from saying what he really wanted to say. He hadn't wanted them to go fight in the first place. He thought it was dangerous and he had been right. Two of them had almost died, but this was what they were meant to do. The three of them were a lot of things, but they weren't cowards. He was going to have to come to terms with that sooner or later.

Finally realizing that she was the only one present during the spell and conscious throughout the whole battle, Phoebe finally spoke up. "Yes and no," she began as they turned to look at her. "We couldn't vanquish Oriax. He was too strong," she admitted and Billie nodded as she remembered the fight they'd had in the kitchen. "But we did restore the nexus," she said and Leo's eyes widened in shock.

"You did? Are you sure?" he asked in disbelief that it had actually worked.

"What? You don't have faith in your own wife?" Piper teased and he smiled, relieved that they were making some progress. Actually, restoring the nexus was _huge_ progress.

"I just didn't think it could be done," he told them and Paige smiled proudly.

"Yeah, well, you know us," she bragged and Leo grinned and shook his head.

"I do," he agreed proudly. "I don't know why I'm surprised. You three always seem to manage the impossible," he said and Henry squeezed Paige's hand. He was proud of his wife and relieved that she was safe.

"You guys really restored the nexus?" Coop asked with a slight smile and Phoebe nodded. He turned to her and couldn't help but feel a great amount of admiration for Phoebe. He hadn't wanted her or her sisters to go into that battle, but she had insisted and she was right to do so. Coop was beginning to see that this was what they were meant to do and he made a mental vow to not question their methods anymore.

"Well, Oriax is still out there," Piper said breaking the silence and Leo nodded.

"But we restored the nexus and we made sure only good can use it," Phoebe pointed out feeling optimistic for the first time since this all started. "Evil beings won't be able to access it, so even though Oriax technically controls the house and the nexus, he can't tap into its power," she assured everyone and Coop smiled again at how good she was at this.

"We need a plan of attack," Piper agreed as they stood in a circle plotting their next move.

"Personally, I don't think attacking Oriax is a very good idea," Billie said wincing as she sat down. The rest of them turned to look at her, and for the first time they realized that she too was covered in scratches from Oriax and his claws. "He's stronger than all of us and we can't use our powers on him."

"Billie, are you okay?" Paige asked and she nodded.

"I'm fine," she assured them and Paige raised her hands to heal her. Billie shooed her away. "I'm okay, really. They're just scratches" she promised but Piper shook her head and walked closer to her.

"No you're not," she muttered as she took Billie's arm to take a closer look at the scratches. Billie glanced down to where Piper was looking and her eyes widened.

"That's…a lot worse than it was before," she told them and Piper could see her cuts and scratches quickly worsening right before their eyes. "I, I don't," Billie stuttered and Piper immediately moved her to the couch. "Something's wrong," she choked out and everyone watched in horror as the cuts turned black.

"Paige, heal her now," Piper demanded and Paige did so immediately. Her hands hovered above Billie's now deep black cuts, and Coop saw a look of recognition come across Phoebe's face.

"What is it, Phoebe?" Coop asked as Paige finished healing Billie. Everyone turned to Phoebe and she opened her mouth before speaking.

"I think," she said slowly, unsure of exactly what was happening. "I think that was Oriax's blood," she said and Leo immediately understood.

"The self healing properties in his blood must poison his victims if it mixes with theirs," Leo reasoned, and everyone sat silently as they absorbed this new development. "Luckily, it can be healed," Leo pointed out and everyone let out a sigh of relief knowing that if it couldn't Paige, Piper, and Billie would all be dead.

"So why does he bite?" Phoebe asked and Piper and Paige looked at her curiously. "After he jumped Paige's orb," she began to explain and Billie stood up to join her. "When Paige fell onto the table afterwards, she had bite marks on her neck," Phoebe said and Henry's hand unconsciously grabbed Paige's at this new bit of information.

"Like a vampire?" he asked and Billie shook her head.

"No, he wasn't drinking her blood," she assured him. "It was more like he wanted to…"

"Put something into it," Paige finished for her and Henry squeezed her hand. "He wanted to poison me and that was the fastest way," she said because nobody else seemed willing to vocalize it.

"You were the only one that could heal Piper or Billie," Leo pointed out. "And if nobody could heal you, then you, Piper, and Billie would all be dead," Leo said quietly and Phoebe smiled slightly.

"Good thing he didn't get me too then, huh?" she asked and Piper could tell that she didn't want to think about what could have happened if he had. Even the slightest scratch to Phoebe could have killed them all.

"Definitely," Coop agreed before they all fell into silence.

"This is ridiculous," Piper finally said and everyone could tell that she had had enough. "I'm not even able to go into my own house because of one lousy demon?" she asked before shaking her head. "That's it. We're going to vanquish his sorry ass tonight," she demanded and Leo smiled at his wife's determination.

"Okay," Phoebe agreed and Coop stared at her stunned. He opened his mouth to protest, but Phoebe shook her head. "Don't start," she said softly and he nodded remembering what he had promised himself. As their eyes met they agreed silently that this was what Phoebe was going to do and Coop trusted her to make her own decisions. With a small smile Phoebe walked over to meet Piper.

"Let's do it," Paige agreed as she walked and stood next to them as well while Leo smiled to himself.

Since no demons had attacked over the last six months, the sisters had begun to develop separate lives. They were still close, but they only saw each other a couple times a week, and instead focused more attention on friends and work. But here they were, united together, and Leo knew that the bond was still there. They had fallen back into it seamlessly, and he was relieved.

This fight was going to require teamwork, which was something that had been in short supply over the last few months. This wasn't about Paige's charges, Piper's dreams of opening a restaurant, or Phoebe's blossoming career as an author. This was about the Charmed Ones, the Power of Three, and most importantly, sisters.

**Please leave a review (even a short one) and let me know what you think of my story and what you'd like to see happen. :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry for the wait. I intended to get to the fight in this chapter, but it got really long, so that will wait until next chapter. Ch. 9 is already written and I'll post it as soon as I get some reviews! I hope you enjoy this chapter. Let me know what you think. I'm working really hard to make the characters act as they would have in the show. Any feedback on their dialogue and reactions would be very helpful. Enjoy!**

Ch. 8

"You know, after we vanquish this guy, I am going to write a _scathing_ review of his performance in the Book," Paige promised and Phoebe laughed as the three sisters sat on the floor of the library.

"Well, I must admit that thing where he turns our powers back on us is a bitch," Piper commented and Billie nodded in agreement as she sat down next to Paige and Phoebe.

"It would come in handy, though," Phoebe admitted and Piper shook her head.

"We don't need it," she said confidently. "Just because we can't use our powers against him, can't go into our house, can't get close enough to touch him, and have no potions strong enough to defeat him doesn't mean we can't find a way to vanquish him," she insisted and Paige and Phoebe smiled noticing that Piper had moved into the 'using sarcasm to defuse a life threatening situation' stage of the fighting process. That was usually one step away from kicking ass.

Before the girls could discuss anything further, they saw a figure appearing in bright white lights. Considering Paige was already there, Piper had a sneaking suspicion that she wasn't going to like whoever was about to orb into the library. When the person finally appeared, the sisters recognized it as Sandra, an elder who had helped them a few times in the past.

"Sandra?" Leo asked, surprised that they were getting a visit from an elder. He got up to walk closer to the visitor before Piper shot him a death glare stopping him in his tracks.

"I've come to help," Sandra began as the girls stood up. "Paige, after you informed us that you were fighting Oriax, we were concerned," Sandra stated and Piper snorted.

"Not concerned enough to offer any help then," she pointed out and Sandra ignored the remark.

"And now we hear that you have restored the nexus," the elder said and the girls nodded. Paige smiled as she reveled in their success, but Phoebe and Piper were more cautious in their celebrations. "And manipulated it so that it can only be used by the side of good," she stated rather than asked, and the girls nodded again. "You shouldn't have done that," she told them and Piper rolled her eyes having expected this lecture from the moment she saw the orbs. "You put the entire magical world at risk of disrupting the balance between good and ev-"

"So what were we supposed to do?" Piper finally interrupted as she took a step forward so she was now in front of her sisters. "We destroyed the nexus because _you guys_ advised us to," she reminded, her voice rising. "And then we find ourselves fighting a demon that can only be stopped with the nexus!" she exclaimed having been ready for this confrontation for years. "Oriax is in MY house, and if we had restored the nexus while he was still controlling the house, HE, _evil_," Piper clarified, "would control the nexus. Would _that_ be better for the balance?"

"I understand you were in a difficult situation," Sandra placated and Paige rolled her eyes. She dealt with the elders all the time, but their diplomacy was aggravating. "But we have a vast knowledge. You should have consulted us-"

"Why?" Piper asked. "You didn't know anything. You're up there in your white, cloudy world," she said wildly gesturing upwards with her arms, "giving us 'advice,' while we're fighting demons with poisonous blood!" Piper spat out and Leo bit back a smile. He secretly loved that his wife disrespected the elders to their face. Nobody else ever did that.

"What poisonous blood?" Sandra asked, always in a quest for more information.

"Oriax's blood," Phoebe spoke up feeling she had been silent for far too long. "It's poisonous if it mixes with your own," she explained, and Piper smiled at the stunned look on Sandra's face.

"Ha! You didn't know that, now did ya?" she asked raising her eyebrows.

"Are you sure of its effects?" Sandra questioned in a professional tone, and Paige rolled her eyes.

"Piper, Billie, and I all experienced it first hand," Paige told her, resting both hands on her hips. "Not the most pleasant way to spend an afternoon, I can assure you."

"What's the antidote?" Sandra asked and Phoebe sighed audibly at how slowly the elders caught on.

"Don't you guys watch us from up there?" she questioned rhetorically before answering. "If you heal the wounds that were poisoned, then the poison is removed from the system," she explained impatiently. "I switched powers with Paige while she was unconscious and healed her," she said before stopping and looking at Piper. In one glance it was communicated that they were keeping what Wyatt had done between them for the moment, so Phoebe stayed quiet and let Sandra infer the rest of the story.

"That...was excellent thinking in the moment," Sandra praised and Phoebe stood silently, taken aback by the rare compliment from an elder. "Under normal circumstances we would recommend that your whitelighter remain behind while you go fight so you can be healed when you return should any of you need it."

"Normal circumstances?" Paige asked and Sandra looked at her.

"While you are the whitelighter, you're also a part of the Power of Three, and you'll undoubtedly need that against Oriax," she said and Paige silently agreed. "So, for the remainder of the battle against Oriax, you will have another whitelighter," she informed them and the entire room stood in stunned silence. That was actually…helpful.

"Thank you," Paige finally said as she felt a burden lifted off her shoulders. For the rest of this battle she could focus on being just a witch without worrying about being a whitelighter as well.

"Yes, thank you," Piper repeated and Sandra seemed pleased that Piper admitted her acceptance of the help of the elders. Without another word, they saw another figure appear in white orbs. This time a young man, about the age of 20, with short dark hair and green eyes appeared before them.

"This is Lucas," Sandra stated and Lucas nodded slightly. "He's a new whitelighter, but capable of healing which is what you really need him for," she explained and the sisters silently agreed. They didn't need help fighting. There wasn't anyone stronger than them, so anyone else involved in the battle would only serve as a distraction because they would have to protect them. "Lucas, these are the Charmed Ones. Piper, Phoebe, and Paige," she said introducing each of them before turning to Billie who waved at Lucas. "That's Billie, half of the Ultimate Power," she said and Phoebe almost laughed at the overwhelmed look on Lucas' face. "Now, I must be going."

"Sandra," Piper said stopping her before she orbed out. "Thank you," she said sincerely before Sandra nodded and did orb out leaving the group of, now seven, standing in the library.

"Please call me Luke," the new whitelighter said and the witches nodded in agreement.

"So, Luke, are we your first charges?" Paige asked brightly, and he nodded slowly while Leo laughed from behind him.

"Good luck," he muttered under his breath but Luke heard him. He looked at him questioningly and Leo began to explain. "I used to be their whitelighter, but I clipped my wings to be-"

"Oh, you must be Leo, Piper's husband," Luke said in recognition and Leo nodded. "I've heard of you," he explained and Piper let out a less than enthusiastic laugh.

"Of course you have," she said and Luke suddenly quieted down fearing he had crossed a line.

"I'm sorry," he immediately apologized. "I'm just shocked that the elders assigned the Charmed Ones and the Ultimate Power as my first charges," he said clearly feeling he was in over his head. "I'm hoping you can help guide me as I also guide you," he said and Leo recognized the line as one that was suggested to young whitelighters assigned to experienced witches.

"Okay, well as your first guideline," Piper said narrowing her eyes at him. "Be less formal. This is war, not a boardroom," she told him and Luke glanced down feeling overdressed in his button down dress shirt and pants. "Second, we don't always play by their rules," she gestured upwards and Luke bit back a smile.

"What are you smiling about?" Paige asked and Luke chuckled softly.

"I didn't expect you to play by their rules," he replied. "Nobody expects you to. That's why it's so hard to find a whitelighter who will work with you," he explained and Piper scoffed.

"Well excuse us for having our own way of vanquishing demons without dying," she said and Luke held up both hands in a sign of surrender.

"Hey, I don't make the rules," he defended. "I'm new at this, so you girls just do what you do and I'll report whatever you need them to know, heal you, and that's it," he offered and the sisters glanced at each other.

"He's not half bad," Phoebe commented happily, and Piper shrugged in agreement before Luke went to sit on the couch next to a man he didn't recognize.

"Henry," the man said introducing himself and extending his hand for Luke to shake. As he accepted it, Henry elaborated. "I'm Paige's husband."

"And, are you a…" he trailed off unsure of how to phrase the question.

"Mortal," Henry supplied and Luke nodded before looking questioningly at Coop. "That's Phoebe's boyfriend Coop," Henry explained. "He's a Cupid."

"O-oh," Luke stuttered and Henry laughed.

"Don't worry, kid," he assured him clapping him on the shoulder. "The weirdness is what makes them great," he promised as they looked up to see the three witches reading over a spell Phoebe had written.

* * *

"It's a good spell," Piper agreed setting the paper back on the table. "And if it was anyone besides Oriax I wouldn't doubt that it would work."

"I know," Phoebe sighed sinking into a chair beside Piper. "We're going to need the potion and a plan."

"We could astral project," Paige offered and Piper shook her head having already considered the idea.

"We won't be able to use any of our powers then and we're going to have to find a way to use them," she said and Phoebe's eyes lit up.

"What if we wear some sort of amulet to protect us from witches' powers?" she suggested and Paige's eyebrows went up as she considered the idea. "It wouldn't make Oriax any more vulnerable to our powers, but we would at least be able to defend ourselves without him turning our powers back on us," she elaborated before they turned to Leo wondering if it was an option.

"Actually, that could work," he agreed and all five of them turned to Luke.

"Luke," Phoebe said trying to sound as innocent as possible. "Could you please go ask the elders if they could get us four amulets to protect us from witches' powers?" she asked and Luke nodded in agreement.

"Just basic amulets?" he asked and Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, sure. I'll be back," he promised and immediately orbed off.

"Well he's agreeable," Phoebe said and Piper nodded.

"More than some other whitelighters I've worked with," she said elbowing Leo playfully.

"Hey!" Leo protested as Piper laughed at his expense. "I was just trying to protect all of you. He's only that easy to work with because you're not his permanent charges. Trust me, if you were, he'd be much more stubborn," he insisted and Piper just smiled to let him know she was only joking. Before they could continue their conversation, Luke orbed back in carrying four amulets in his hands.

"These should work," he said as he began handing them to each of the four witches. "The elders promise that they will protect you against your own powers and they assure me there's no way they could possibly not work," he told them before taking the one out of Piper's hand and putting it on himself. "They're sure it's failsafe. So test it. Try and freeze me," he said and Piper admired his distrust of the elders' knowledge. She tried to freeze him, but he remained immune to her powers.

"Perfect," Piper said happily, and Luke took off the amulet and handed it to her. "One problem solved. Thank you, Luke," she said and he nodded before returning to his place on the couch. "So we have the spell, the potion, the nexus, and we can use our powers. It's a start."

"You should probably have potions ready to come back here to have Luke heal you during the battle in case you get cut," Leo suggested and Paige agreed knowing she wouldn't have time to do it while they were fighting.

"I'll make it," she offered hopping up to make the potion. "It won't take long."

"Okay, so we get to the basement, throw the vanquishing potion, say the spell, and hope it works?" Phoebe summarized and Piper nodded.

"Yep," she confirmed before an idea struck Phoebe.

"Billie, did you use your projection powers last time we fought him?" she asked and Billie nodded.

"I tried to," she answered dejectedly. "I tried to amplify your powers like I used to do with Christy's, but it didn't have an effect on Oriax."

"Instead of amplifying our powers try to…de-amplify his," she suggested and Piper caught on to what she was saying, but Billie remained confused as to how she was supposed to accomplish this.

"If our powers don't affect him because of his strength," Piper began to explain, "then if you can weaken him, between our powers, the nexus, and the spell we may have enough to vanquish him," she said and Billie's eyes widened as she realized what the sisters were saying.

"The nexus will be amplifying our powers anyways," Phoebe pointed out and Piper nodded. "So between that and Billie projecting weakness onto Oriax…" she trailed off feeling as if they finally had a plan of attack.

It seemed surreal that they were finally at the point where they were able to face Oriax. Was it really time for the ultimate fight? It sure seemed that way

**If you want to read the next chapter, you know what you need to do. Just leave a quick review!  
**


	9. Chapter 9

Ch. 9

"It's time," Piper said as the four witches grabbed hands and stood facing the four men in the library. "No goodbyes this time," Piper instructed and everyone smiled knowingly. "We'll be back."

"I'll be listening in case you call me," Luke promised and the girls nodded. "Hopefully you won't need me."

"Alright, let's go," Piper said rushing the process because she was anxious to get going. As each sister glanced one last time at their husband or boyfriend, they silently orbed out and into the basement of the manor.

"Well, here we are," Paige muttered as they looked around waiting for Oriax. They knew he would appear soon, and hopefully all they would have to do would be say the spell and watch as he was vanquished. "Wonder what he'll look like this time," she mused and Piper shrugged.

"I don't care if he looks like a sleeping puppy, I'm vanquishing him," she insisted, but before anyone could respond, they saw a demon flame in just a few feet in front of them. This time his entire body was black and he had two red horns protruding from his skull. The claws on his hands were longer than before, and it seemed his teeth were pointier as well.

"Black with red horns? That's awfully cliché," Piper taunted as she took in Oriax's new appearance. Instinctively, she tried to freeze him and he deflected her power. When it had no effect on her, the witches could detect a slight look of surprise on Oriax's face, but he didn't let it distract him for long. As Piper tried to blow up Oriax, Phoebe reached into her pocket and grabbed the spell and potion hoping her sisters would see what she was doing. Unsurprisingly, Oriax wasn't affected by Piper's powers, and Billie couldn't throw him across the room, but she could stop him from running towards them.

"Hurry," Billie urged as she held her hand out straight in front of her hoping it would hold Oriax off long enough for the sisters to vanquish him. As Paige saw that Phoebe had the vanquishing potion in her hands, she called for it hoping Oriax wouldn't intercept anything and prevent the plan from working.

"Potion!" she called and orbed it to Oriax's feet where it exploded and he cried out in pain.

"Quick, the spell," Piper said, but rather than getting out their own copies, her and Paige just read over Phoebe's shoulder.

"_Demon with blood so black_

_Known to all-"_

Before they could finish, the paper burst into flames, and with a surprised cry Phoebe dropped it to the floor as it burned her fingers. They looked up to see Oriax manipulating the fire, making it grow bigger, and without thinking, Piper froze the flames. The fire stopped growing, but Oriax only gave the sisters a wicked smile. They may have tricked him with the potion, but they wouldn't be able to read the spell.

"Billie, do something!" Phoebe yelled desperately as she shook her hand feeling minor burns on a few of her fingertips. Distantly in her mind she hoped the poison wouldn't affect her since she'd been injured by flames and not Oriax himself. Before anyone could react, one of Oriax's claws detached from his hand and flew into Piper's stomach. With a pained cry, she yanked the claw out knowing that the longer it was in there the longer the poison would interact with her blood.

"Piper!" Paige called out, but unlike last time, the poison took effect immediately and Piper collapsed to the ground. Thinking quickly, Billie threw the teleportation potion at Piper and they watched as she disappeared from the manor.

* * *

Back at the library, all four men sat in silence as they waited for word on the battle. It shouldn't have taken very long to throw the potion and say the spell, but they also knew nothing ever went as planned. Luke was torn between wanting to help and hoping he wasn't needed, and the rest were filled with worry for their loved ones.

Suddenly they were distracted when Piper appeared on the floor, her hands clutching a wound on her stomach. There wasn't much blood yet, but her face was pale and she could barely breathe.

"It's the poison," Leo said immediately as he and Luke both rushed to Piper's side. Luke held his hands over Piper's wound and they waited for it to heal. After a few moments of nothing happening, Leo looked at Luke who had a concerned look on his face. "What the hell is going on?" he demanded as his hand clutched Piper's. He could tell she was still breathing so she wasn't dead, and they'd healed wounds with this poison before so he couldn't understand the problem.

"I-I don't know," Luke admitted and Leo held back his tears. He hadn't even said goodbye this time…

* * *

"Phoebe, look out," Billie exclaimed and Phoebe ducked as an energy ball flew at her head. They were stalling until Luke brought Piper back so they could say the vanquishing spell, but it was taking longer than it should.

"Crystals, circle!" Paige suddenly called and was relieved when crystals from the attic appeared and formed a circle around Oriax. They wouldn't hold him for very long because he was so powerful, but they might buy them a few moments of time until Piper could get back.

"Where the hell is Luke with Piper?" Phoebe wondered out loud and the three of them pushed the fear out of their minds. If she wasn't back it meant she wasn't healed. If she wasn't healed, that meant…

"Should we leave?" Paige asked and Phoebe shook her head gesturing to Oriax being contained in the cage.

"No," she insisted knowing what Piper would want. She would hate them for giving up when they were this close. "We already used the potion. Let's buy some more time."

* * *

"It's working, but not fast enough. The poison's working faster than I can," Luke admitted and Leo let out a shaky breath. "We need Paige," Luke relented and Leo nodded hoping against all odds that Paige would orb in and save the day.

"Go get her," Leo said immediately and Luke shook his head.

"I'm the only thing keeping the poison from spreading," he reminded Leo who nodded and forced himself to make another plan.

"Alright, try to sense Paige and get her to hear your call," he instructed and Luke did as he was told. He closed his eyes and focused on the girls, but he wasn't having any luck. Shaking his head, he opened his eyes and Leo let out a frustrated groan.

"I can only sense Billie," he admitted and Leo felt a few tears of fear and frustration fall from his eyes. This was the third time in two days he was watching his wife die. "It takes time for whitelighters to form a bond with their charges."

"I know! Dammit, I know!" Leo exclaimed as he stood and searched for a potion. He had to go to the manor and get Paige himself. He wasn't going to sit there and watch his wife, the mother of his chil-Wyatt! Piper was going to kill him for traumatizing their son, but at least she'd be alive to do it.

* * *

"We have to go," Paige conceded and Phoebe agreed. Something was clearly wrong. Luke hadn't been able to heal Piper. She refused to think too hard about what that meant, but they couldn't do this without her.

"I'll stay. You go and get back here fast," Billie said surprising Paige and Phoebe. At the looks of shock on their faces, she continued. "He's contained for now. Go and get back," she insisted and they quickly orbed off to Magic School knowing the crystals wouldn't hold for long.

When they arrived, they saw Piper lying on the floor with Luke healing her, but there was a lot of commotion. They heard Leo's panicked voice and were struck with the reality that Piper was still hurt.

* * *

Billie looked around the basement hoping to see a weapon or anything she could use if Oriax got free. She knew it was inevitable, but before she could form a plan, Oriax let out a deafening roar and broke through the barrier of the crystals.

Without another thought, Billie saw an ax and telekinetically threw it at Oriax. It hit him right in the chest, but Billie saw very little blood. It had barely wounded him. He easily pulled it out with his hands and threw it back at Billie. She deflected it back towards him, this time aiming for one of his horns. This time she had more success and saw one of his horns got cut. It was nearly severed and Oriax cried out in pain.

"Nice cliché horns," Billie commented as Oriax detached another claw and threw it at her. Reacting quickly, she redirected it towards the wall beside her and Oriax sneered at her. Before she could think of her next move, Oriax simply lunged at her and plunged his remaining claws into her sides. Her eyes widened as the pain spread through her body and she lost control of her limbs. The only thing holding her up at the moment was Oriax. The black blood from his wounded horn dripped onto Billie's shoulder before he let her sink to the floor.

* * *

"Coop, get Wyatt!" Leo instructed and Coop immediately beamed to the nursery and appeared seconds later with Wyatt in his arms. The second Wyatt saw his mother lying on the floor, he orbed out of Coop's arms and to her side. Paige rushed over to help, and it wasn't until then that the rest of the group realized that she and Phoebe were there.

The three whitelighters knelt over Piper healing her, and in a few moments she took a deep breath and sat up. As she got her bearings, she stood up quickly handing Wyatt to Leo.

"Where's Billie?" she asked immediately and Paige grabbed her hand as Phoebe rushed to do the same.

"Alone at the manor with Oriax," she answered and without another word they orbed away.

"Wyatt, no!" Leo exclaimed as he watched his son orb from his arms and disappear in the orbs with the girls.

* * *

"Wyatt?" Piper exclaimed as she arrived in the basement of the manor with her son in her arms in front of the most powerful demon of all time. "You go back to Magic School right now!" she insisted but he shook his head. "Yes," she demanded knowing that the manor was the most dangerous place to be right now. "Now!" She let out a sigh of relief as he orbed off, but groaned in frustration as she realized he had only orbed to stand in front of her.

"Piper, look," Phoebe said gesturing to the other side of the basement where they saw Billie collapsed in a heap on the floor. They could see she was bleeding and they knew she only had a few seconds left before the poison would overtake her. Knowing there was nothing they could do for Billie until Oriax was defeated, the sisters focused on the task at hand.

* * *

"Billie's hurt," Luke said suddenly as his eyes flew open. "Bad," he said and orbed out before anyone could argue. He appeared in the manor and saw Billie bleeding profusely and the sisters and Wyatt on the other side of Oriax. Luke bent over Billie trusting that the sisters would handle Oriax. Billie couldn't wait.

Piper tried to shield Wyatt from Oriax, but Wyatt kept darting in front of her. As he got a good look at Oriax, he immediately put up his shield which protected him and all three witches. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Paige pulled the spell from her pocket and handed it to Piper who was in the middle. Knowing now wasn't the time to argue with her stubborn son, Piper silently agreed with Paige, and the sisters began to read aloud.

"_Demon with blood so black_

_Known to all as Oriax"_

The sisters flinched as energy balls collided violently with Wyatt's shield, but nothing broke through the barrier. Forcing themselves to focus, they continued with the spell.

"_Nexus combined with the Power of Three_

_In all forms, we vanquish thee!"_

Oriax let out a scream of pain like none of the girls had heard before, and his body was engulfed in flames. He continued to scream as the fire consumed him, and Piper picked Wyatt up into her arms feeling the need to make sure he was safe.

"Paige, go help Luke," Phoebe said and a look of recognition crossed Paige's face before she orbed quickly to Billie's side.

"It's bad, Paige," Luke muttered as he watched the glow coming off of his and Paige's hands. "Really bad," he admitted as they both watched, waiting for the second her wounds started to heal.

"The poison affected Piper faster this time too," Paige whispered and Luke nodded knowing that their chances of saving Billie from so many poisoned cuts weren't good. The poison much have worked its way through her entire bloodstream by now. Torn between saving her friend and making sure Oriax was vanquished, Paige glanced up to see Oriax still in flames.

Piper and Phoebe remained in front of Oriax in case anything was to go wrong with the vanquish, and Wyatt still had his shield up knowing that the danger wasn't gone yet. Slowly, Oriax began shrinking in the flames before suddenly exploding into millions of tiny pieces. As soon as that happened, Wyatt put his shield down and Piper and Phoebe rushed to Billie's side.

"Wyatt, help your Aunt Billie," Piper said setting him down at her side. "Just like you helped mommy," she encouraged and was relieved when he raised his hands over her cuts and began to heal her. He'd caught on quickly and already knew what to do. In a matter of seconds his hands were glowing just like Paige and Luke's. If anything or anyone was going to save Billie, it would be these people.

**Just so you know, although this storyline with Oriax seems to be wrapping up, the story itself is FAR from over ;) Please leave a review to let me know what you think!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry for the delay in updating. I had a pretty busy holiday weekend. The next chapter shouldn't take as long, I promise. Thanks to those of you who reviewed the story so far. I really appreciate it and they helped me force myself to write this weekend despite my busy schedule.  
**

Ch. 10

"Come on Billie," Phoebe muttered as she watched her nephew, sister, and new whitelighter try and heal her friend. "Don't give up," she whispered knowing that if anything happened to the young witch, all three of the sisters would carry her death with them for the rest of their lives. Billie had been hurt while fighting their fight, not hers. And she'd been hurt while they'd left her alone with the demon while they went to check on their sister.

"That's it, Wyatt," Piper said feeling the need to encourage her son. Despite being only four years old, in a matter of one day he'd been asked to heal on three separate occasions and had been present during the vanquish of the most powerful demon the Charmed Ones had ever fought. It wasn't exactly his typical Sunday, but Piper knew that now wasn't the time for her guilt.

Piper and Phoebe continued to watch in fear that Billie wouldn't return to them, but her wounds finally started to shrink. They heard Luke let out a small sigh of relief, but none of them moved their hands. They still had a long way to go to heal her from the effects of all the poison. After a few long moments, Billie's eyes flew open and she gasped loudly.

"Billie!" Paige cried as all three whitelighters removed their hands from over her body. "Oh thank God!" she said throwing her arms around her friend.

"I'm fine," Billie assured them despite the fact that she knew that it had been a close call. "Oriax?"

"Vanquished," Piper replied happily and Billie looked at her in disbelief.

"Seriously?" she asked and the sisters all nodded. "I missed it?" she said disappointedly and Phoebe laughed.

"Yeah," Piper smiled. "Now we have to get back to Magic School. Luke, meet us there. Paige?" she prompted and the four witches and Wyatt all grabbed hands before orbing to the library closely followed by Luke.

* * *

"Piper? Is Wyatt okay?" Leo asked, jumping up from his seat before the figures orbing in had even come into focus.

"Yeah, he's okay," she assured her husband, handing the child to his worried father. "He's in big trouble," she said in a tone meant for Wyatt to understand. "But he's okay."

"I can't believe he did that," Leo muttered as he clutched Wyatt to his chest. "Is everyone else okay? Billie?" he asked knowing that she'd been injured when Luke left.

"Everyone's fine now," Phoebe told him and small smiles of disbelief crept across the faces of everyone in the room.

"Oriax?" he asked almost afraid of what their answer would be.

"Dead. Gone. Vanquished," Piper affirmed, and Leo looked at her blankly before a wide grin consumed his face.

"Thanks to Wyatt," Paige said and Leo glanced between his wife and his oldest son unsure of what to do next.

"His force field gave us time to say the spell," Piper explained, and Leo shook his head with a laugh as Wyatt orbed out of his arms. With a sigh, Piper turned to Luke. "Can you just make sure he's in the nursery with Chris?" she asked and Luke nodded before orbing to check. "Your son almost gave me a heart attack," Piper muttered as she turned back to Leo. "He refused to stand behind me," she told him and Leo smiled.

"My son?" he teased and Piper nodded as Leo chuckled. "He wanted to protect his mom," he reasoned and she shook her head.

"If something had happened to him…" she trailed off and Leo rested his hands on her shoulders.

"But nothing did," he assured her and she nodded. "Everything's fine. And you guys managed the impossible," he pointed out with a smile. "Again," he added proudly and Piper smiled slightly. After a brief moment of silence Luke orbed back into the library with Victor, Chris, and Wyatt.

"I thought it was about time you all headed home," Luke said and Piper looked at him gratefully as she took Chris in her arms and hugged him. "I can drop your dad off on the way."

"Thank you," she smiled at him and he nodded in return.

"We couldn't have done it without you, Luke," Phoebe offered and he smiled happily at the compliment.

"Well it was a pleasure working with all of you," he responded glancing at each witch individually. "I only hope I get the chance to do so again," he said wistfully before orbing off with Victor.

"Let's head home," Piper sighed and everyone agreed before separating.

"Billie, do you want me to orb you home too?" Paige asked referring to the apartment Billie had found just a month ago. She'd been paying rent with the money she'd earned from jobs from the temp agency Paige had set her up with, and her newfound independence had helped her recover from the loss of her sister.

"No," Piper answered for her before Billie could respond. "She can sleep in Phoebe's old room tonight. Nobody should be alone," she finished and Billie looked at her gratefully. She hadn't wanted to impose, but she truly didn't want to have to spend the night alone.

"Thanks," Billie said softly and Leo and Piper nodded indicating that it was no trouble before Paige and Henry walked over to them. They prepared to orb out as Phoebe and Coop started to beam home, but Piper called out to her sister.

"Phoebe, wait," Piper said stopping her. As their eyes met, Piper was suddenly unsure of what to say now that everyone was staring at her. With a sigh she settled for something simple that didn't convey anything that she actually wanted to tell her. "Goodnight," she told her softly and Phoebe gave her a small smile knowing that Piper had left a lot unsaid.

"I'll stop by the manor tomorrow," Phoebe promised and Piper nodded gratefully. Even after just two days together, it was going to be difficult for the sisters to part again. Working as the Power of Three bonded them so strongly that it was nearly impossible to break even when they needed to separate themselves.

"So will I," Paige added as the sisters shared an understanding look.

"We'll have dinner," Piper confirmed as she began running through ideas of what to cook. "To celebrate," she added quietly and everyone in the room nodded before orbing or beaming back to their homes. It had been a long weekend, and it was finally time for it to be over.

* * *

"I was so proud of you today Babe," Henry whispered softly as he ran his fingers down his wife's arm. He looked up at her face as she lay next to him in their bed and his breath caught in his throat. Her hair fell haphazardly around her on the pillow and a lazy smile spread across her face at his words.

"Really?" she asked and he smiled back at her knowing that she must be exhausted.

"Definitely," he told her as he grabbed her hand in hers and laced their fingers together. "You were so strong and determined no matter what happened," he said as their eyes locked. "And you never gave up even when you faced the impossible," he whispered as he brought their hands up to his mouth to place a kiss on them. "And that's one of the reasons why I love you."

"What's that?" she questioned and he chuckled lightly as her feet tangled with his beneath the sheets.

"You're a fighter," he answered simply and the smile faded off her face and was replaced by a much more serious emotion. "I knew that from the moment I met you. You were fighting me over MY parolee's future," he laughed as he freed his hand from hers to brush some hair out of her eyes. "I didn't know it then, but I had definitely met my match," he said and a few tears fell from the corner of Paige's eyes. "Don't cry, Baby," he laughed softly as he wiped her tears away.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly as she shook her head feeling foolish. "I'm just emotional. And you're being way too sweet," she scolded teasingly and he smiled as she tucked her head against his chest. He rested his atop hers and her eyes fell shut. They were quiet for a while as she listened to the steady beating of his heart while one of her hands rested on his chest. He occasionally ran a few fingers soothingly through her hair, content to just lay there with her.

His mind raced through all the things that had happened that weekend. For those few moments when Phoebe was healing Paige and he wasn't sure she was going to make it, he felt like his heart had been ripped out of his chest. He could barely remember what his life was like before her. It certainly wasn't as exciting as it was now-or as dangerous. But to him any danger was worth it if it meant he could have Paige by his side. After a long silence, he was sure she had fallen asleep, but her soft voice surprised him.

"I was proud of you this weekend too," she said quietly and he smiled at her words.

"Oh yeah?" he asked and he felt, rather than saw, her nod against his chest.

"Mmhmm," she replied sleepily. "You handled it like you'd been around magic your whole life. You helped us and you never tried to discourage me from doing what I had to do," she told him and he could tell that despite her tired state she was grateful for that.

"That's because I love you for who you are and what you have to do," he answered simply, and in response Paige took the hand that had been resting on his chest and wrapped it around his waist. "I'll always help you Paige," he told her softly. "Remember that," he told her pressing a kiss to the top of her head before he heard her breathing slow indicating that she had indeed fallen asleep.

* * *

"Popcorn, candy, and wine," Phoebe announced walking into the living room from the kitchen as Coop set up the movie on the TV.

"Are you sure you don't want to go to bed?" he asked for at least the tenth time that night. With a roll of her eyes Phoebe sighed loudly.

"Coop, I'm way too wired to sleep right now. After a weekend like we just had I need to wind down," she explained as she sat next to him on the couch placing the food and wine on the coffee table. "If you need to go to sleep then that's fine. I don't mind, but I'll be up for hours," she told him and he nodded. "I might not even sleep tonight. I'll probably just go into the office early."

"You're going to work tomorrow?" Coop asked astounded that she was even thinking of work considering the weekend she had just had.

"Of course," Phoebe replied with a shrug. "Why not?" she asked and Coop's eyes widened.

"Why not?" he repeated in disbelief. "Because you just had the fight of your lives, that's why not!" he exclaimed and Phoebe took a deep breath before responding.

"Coop, the only way to get back into things after a fight like that is to jump back into our normal lives," she told him and he opened his mouth to protest but she cut him off. "I've been doing this a long time. Trust me," she whispered and Coop lowered his eyes to his lap knowing that she was right. "I'll be tired at work. And I might even fall asleep at my desk. My column might suck," she admitted as his eyes rose to meet hers again. "But those things won't be the end of the world," she reasoned and he nodded knowing that she was right. "And coming from me, someone who's helped actually stop the end of the world a few times, that means something," she joked and Coop laughed before running a hand down the side of her face gently.

"I just worry about you," he told her resigning himself to the fact that he would never fully come to terms with the fact that Phoebe loved being a witch. She would always put it above all else. He didn't mind that he was second in her life behind her magic, but he did worry that one day that magic would exhaust her to the point where she couldn't recover.

"I know," she said sliding over as she climbed into his lap so she was straddling him. "And I love you for it," she assured him while wrapping her arms around his neck. "But you don't need to worry about me," she told him and he smiled at her while a matching smile appeared on her face.

"I'm still going to," he told her and she giggled before pressing her lips to his for a short kiss.

"I know," Phoebe replied resting her forehead against his, their noses almost touching. She reveled in the way Coop made her feel. He was the sweetest man she had ever known, let alone fallen in love with. He always had her best interests at heart. Without him she would still be alone and cynical without a chance at finding love or happiness in the world. His love didn't make her feel desperate like her loves in the past had. Her love for Coop felt comforting and safe. "And I love you for that. More than you know," she whispered as she leaned in for another kiss.

* * *

Piper crawled under the sheets of the large bed and Leo's arm reached out to pull her body against his. She smiled slightly as she moved closer to him under the blankets and he propped his head up on his elbow to look at her. He smiled to himself at the realization that they were still together. They had been married for six years now, but the sight of her next to him still overwhelmed him from time to time.

"I can't imagine losing you, Piper," Leo said quietly and she nodded understandingly. One of her hands came up to rest on the side of his neck while her eyes trailed from his face to his chest. "Three times in two days…" he trailed off and she nodded again.

"I know," she told him. "We've been through too much," she agreed as Leo moved his hand from her waist to her lower back. "I won't let anything come between us, Leo," she promised.

"Neither will I," he assured her as he leaned down to place a soft kiss on the top of her head. "I'd do anything for you, Piper," he breathed out and she sighed before burying her face against his chest. He shifted and wrapped both arms around her waist as she fell silent. The events of the weekend began to take their toll on her as she felt exhaustion overtaking her body.

"Do you think Wyatt's okay?" she finally asked as Leo's fingers gently combed through her hair. "He's been through a lot today."

"I think he'll be fine. He's a fighter, just like his mom," he said and Piper tilted her chin to smile at her husband. "I'm serious," he insisted. "He went with you and your sisters today because on some level he knew that this fight was important and different than the rest he's seen you guys involved in."

"I just worry about him," Piper admitted and Leo grinned down at her.

"It's what you do best," he reminded her and she shook her head with a soft laugh before returning it to Leo's chest. "He's just growing up," Leo whispered after they had both fallen silent. "And he's only going to want to help more and more," he reasoned and Piper let out a tired sigh.

"You're right," she said and she squeezed her eyes shut. "But it might be fun to teach him to control his powers and about the Book and everything," she mumbled and Leo smiled in relief that Piper was looking forward to this.

"Absolutely," he agreed. "And we'll always worry," he told her as he tightened his arms around Piper's waist. "But we have to keep in mind that he is literally the strongest magical being ever."

"I guess you're right," she mused and Leo noticed that her tone was much lighter than it had been a few minutes ago. "I still don't want him healing anyone unless it's absolutely necessary," she insisted and Leo brought a hand up to her neck and guided her face up to meet his eyes.

"I don't either," he told her, his tone now completely serious. "And I tried to get him to stay away from you when you were lying there on the floor," he said and Piper was taken aback by the pain she could see in her husband's eyes. "But if there was even a _chance_ that-" he stopped abruptly as his voice broke and Piper brought a hand up to the side of his face. His breathing was heavy as he tried to hold back the tears and he took a deep breath before speaking again. "Piper, you were dying in my arms and there was nothing I could do," he whispered as a few tears finally leaked from his eyes.

"Leo," she interrupted but he shook his head.

"No, I thought I was losing you," he said yet again that night. "And I couldn't take it," he admitted tearfully. "When Wyatt hugged you and you started to heal, I, I just couldn't ignore it. I'm sorry, but I-"

"Leo, it's okay," she assured him. "I would have done the same thing," she rationalized and he nodded, his chest still heaving from the emotions he'd just run through. "If it had been you in my arms, I…I don't know what I would have done," she admitted quietly and Leo pulled her into a tight hug against his chest. "I don't want to find out."

"You won't," he promised and a few tears stung at the corners of Piper's eyes. "I'm never leaving you, Piper. I don't care what it takes, but this family is staying together," he insisted and she nodded into his shoulder in agreement.

"I love you," she choked out as she pulled back to look into his eyes.

"I love you," he repeated before pulling her face to his for a lingering kiss. As their mouths met, they were both taken aback by the passion that was unleashed the second their lips touched. Leo's hand disappeared in Piper's hair and his lips parted as their tongues met. A soft moan escaped Piper as Leo rolled them over so she was beneath him and he pulled his lips from hers. He began trailing kisses from her jaw line and down her collarbone leaving no inch of skin untouched.

"I need you, Leo," she breathed out and their eyes locked as his hands inched underneath her t-shirt. Piper sat up slightly so Leo could pull it off of her and he flung it to the floor without a second thought.

"You have me," he told her before claiming her mouth with his yet again. "Always," he muttered against her lips.

**Please leave a quick review and let me know what you think. This was a different type of chapter than the rest so I'd love to hear your thoughts on the different relationships and character interactions. And of course, quicker reviews mean quicker updates! ;)**


	11. Chapter 11

Ch. 11

The sisters had gathered in the kitchen under the pretense of cleaning up after dinner, but it had been more of an excuse to spend some time together. Leo, Henry, and Coop had moved into the living room for drinks knowing that the girls needed their space. Phoebe stood near the island in the kitchen watching as Piper began to wash a pan she had dirtied while cooking.

"I wish Billie could have been here tonight," Paige sighed as she distractedly played with a dish towel on the counter.

"What was she going to tell Ryan?" Phoebe asked referring to the man Billie had met two months ago at one of her temp jobs. "That she was too busy celebrating her most recent vanquish?" she said pointedly and Paige sighed. "Besides, I think they just went to P3. She might stop by later."

"Yeah," Paige trailed off and Piper turned from the sink to face her sisters.

"What is it?" she questioned knowing something was on their mind, and Phoebe's face met hers communicating silently before Piper shut her eyes briefly in exhaustion. "We had a weird and forced celebratory dinner and now it seems like we're not even happy that we vanquished Oriax," Piper pointed out and Phoebe noted that Piper had included herself with the use of the word 'we.'

"What if this is only a new beginning?" Paige asked quietly, almost afraid to voice her thoughts.

"It's not," Piper said firmly shaking her head. "It's only because of the nexus," she insisted pointing her finger at Paige. "There isn't some new ruler of the underworld or anything like that." The three sisters stood unmoving in the kitchen as they stared at each other all desperately hoping that Piper was right. They couldn't handle another eight years of demon fighting and losing more people they loved to evil. Right?

Finally Phoebe glanced down at the floor briefly before looking back up to see her sisters staring back at her curiously. "Did either of you miss it?" she asked in a cautious whisper, and Paige and Piper regarded her carefully before considering.

"What do you mean?" Piper finally asked and Phoebe sighed before turning and sinking into a chair at the kitchen table.

"Fighting evil," Phoebe clarified as she ran a hand through her hair. She'd been arguing with herself all day over whether or not she truly had missed it. She knew that she should be grateful for the normal life she had been blessed with recently, but she also couldn't help but yearn for the excitement and fulfillment she had gotten out of protecting innocents from evil. "Saving innocents. Saving the world," she finished in a soft tone and Piper sighed before walking over and sitting in the chair next to her.

"Of course I do," Paige replied as she walked over and stood near her sisters. "It was nice to have such a normal life for a while, but now I'm not always sure what to do with myself," she admitted and Piper found herself shocked at what her sisters were revealing. "Sometimes I find myself helping my charges a little too much."

"At least you still have that," Phoebe responded quietly and Paige immediately felt guilty for bringing up her whitelighter responsibilities. With a sigh Paige let out another confession.

"Sometimes I wish a demon would attack," Paige whispered too ashamed to look at either of her sisters. "Not a powerful one," she said hurriedly. "But something to break up the day or change it up. The fighting and vanquishing was such a rush," she said in an almost nostalgic tone and Piper glanced up to look at both of her younger sisters. The three girls fell silent, none of them able to make eye contact with each other in light of the recent admissions.

"Piper?" Phoebe asked turning to face her older sister wondering what she was going to say. Piper had always been the most hesitant to accept magic into her life and the most willing to give it up, so Phoebe wasn't surprised when Piper shook her head.

"Phoebe, I miss working with you and Paige," she answered and Phoebe looked down at the table wishing she hadn't brought this up. "And when we would defeat something, I would have a huge sense of accomplishment," she continued and Phoebe nodded in agreement. "But I don't miss my husband and my children being in danger every waking moment."

"I meant fighting the good fight. You know, good versus evil…" she trailed off as Piper's eyes fell to her hands clearly indicating that she didn't feel the same way and was unsure of what to say.

"Well, Phoebe," Piper finally began. "Out of all of us, Prue included, you're the one that loves being a witch the most," she reasoned and Phoebe rested her chin on her hand. "And it's really all you know. You've been doing it most of your adult life. You were even quickest to take to the stories Grams used to tell when we were young," she reminded her and Phoebe smiled slightly realizing that she was right. "There's no right way to feel about this," Piper assured her and Phoebe nodded her agreement before they fell silent.

"I know we all said we wanted a normal life. Something that magic couldn't interfere with," Phoebe said and she could tell that both of her sisters were listening intently. "But now that we have it, it almost seems anticlimactic. Now normal seems sort of," she paused looking for the right word before Piper interrupted her.

"Boring," her older sister whispered and Phoebe nodded in agreement that boring was indeed the right description. Squeezing her eyes shut Piper choked out what she had been dying to say for months. "I'm bored out of my mind!" she exclaimed and then immediately snapped her mouth shut, almost surprised the words had come out. "I'm sorry, I-"

"Piper, it's okay," Phoebe assured her as she grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "It's a major life change."

"All I ever said was how much I wanted a normal life, and now that I have one I don't know what to do with it," she complained and the three sisters all breathed heavily wondering how they had gotten to this position.

"No wonder why they always say be careful what you wish for," Paige said in a tone that was meant to be light but ended up sounding more depressing than anything.

"Man, Freud would have a field day with us," Piper said before turning to Phoebe. "Hey, you're the one with the psychology degree. Where do we go from here?" she asked and Phoebe threw her hands up and shook her head.

"This goes SO far beyond my degree," she laughed before turning serious once again. "We'll all figure this out," Phoebe said sounding more sure of herself than she had earlier in the conversation.

"How can you be so sure?" Paige asked and Phoebe cocked an eyebrow at her.

"I can see the future, remember?" she teased and Piper smacked her lightly, all of them knowing full well that she hadn't had any premonitions regarding their futures.

* * *

"This is incredible," Coop said excitedly as the three men sat comfortably in the living room. "The girls did it!" he exclaimed and Leo laughed at Coop's excitement.

"You haven't seen them in action very much," Leo realized and Coop shook his head. "They are good," he said wistfully remembering the earlier days when they repeatedly surprised him with their innate talent for fighting evil.

"I just don't get why this happened now," Henry admitted and Leo shrugged. "I mean, where was this guy six months ago when the demons were all over Magic School and everything?"

"He was still bound by the power of the nexus," Leo explained leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees. "It took time for the magic holding him to deteriorate after the nexus was destroyed."

"Oh man," Henry muttered shaking his head with a disbelieving smile on his face. "I always knew what Paige and her sisters did, but it's incredible to be a part of it all."

"It is," Leo agreed nodding. "We've all been doing this for a really long time."

"And this final battle with Oriax was it, right?" Coop asked and Leo turned to look at him questioningly. "I mean, everyone's back to their normal lives?" he clarified and Leo shrugged before nodding.

"It seems that way," he answered and Coop grinned widely. "We never really know, but yeah. Normal lives," Leo murmured and Henry and Coop were in too much of a celebratory mood to detect the slight disappointment in Leo's voice.

"Phoebe will be thrilled," Coop said happily and Leo looked at him curiously.

"You really think so?" he challenged and Coop gave him a confused look.

"Of course," he responded immediately. "She wants to have a normal life with me and raise a family-"

"But _this,_ this fighting," Leo interrupted no longer able to hold in his thoughts, "is their normal life. Especially Phoebe's," he added quietly and Coop shook his head defiantly.

"I don't think so. Maybe a few years ago," Coop relented and Leo leaned against the back of the couch in defeat. He couldn't help but think that maybe he was the only one who felt like the past weekend was the first time they'd been true to who they were for the past six months.

"And Paige has her charges," Henry said and Leo nodded knowing that her whitelighter duties did keep Paige busy and possibly more fulfilled than her sisters. "And Piper?" Henry asked carefully getting the sense that Leo wasn't as thrilled about their return to a normal life as the rest of them.

"She always wanted a normal life," he answered vaguely in an attempt to dodge the question. "Now she has it," he whispered. He looked at the drink in his hands and set it on the table in front of him. He couldn't help but feel like these new normal lives they all had were reminiscent of when they all took on new identities after destroying the nexus. Everything they had worked for was gone, and they had to start all over. It worked for a while, but eventually it was only natural to want to go back to the way things were.

"Leo!" he heard Piper call from the kitchen and he was relieved for the distraction.

"Excuse me," Leo said to Henry and Coop and immediately headed to the kitchen wondering what his wife needed.

"We need whitelighter help," Paige said the minute Leo walked through the doorway and into the kitchen. He stood stunned for a moment as he took in the sight of the three of them gathered at the kitchen table. It was a sight he hadn't seen since they had all lived together and he felt a sense of nostalgia wash over him.

"But you're the whiteli-"

"No," Paige cut him off shaking her head. "We need advice," she clarified and Leo looked to Piper in confusion.

"We're bored," she stated simply and Leo's eyes widened wondering if they were having the same thoughts he'd been having.

"What do you mean?" he asked wanting to make sure they felt the same way before he burdened them with his problems.

"You know those normal lives we spent nine years searching for?" Phoebe asked and Leo nodded. "We sort of hate them," she admitted and Leo grinned happily.

"Leo!" Piper scolded at his excitement. "We tell you we're practically miserable and you stand there with a grin on your face? Well get rid of it now!" she demanded.

"I'm sorry!" he said unable to completely wipe the smile from his face. "I was just having the same thoughts in there," he gestured to the living room.

"Hmm, so you're crazy too," Paige surmised. "What a help you've been," she said sarcastically and Leo realized that all three sisters looked totally dejected and he couldn't understand why.

"Crazy? What's crazy?" he asked and Piper looked up from staring at the table in front of her.

"Lots of things," she said casually and Phoebe smiled slightly at the sarcastic tone of her voice. "Jogging, miming, us wishing demons would attack us again on a weekly basis."

"That's not crazy," Leo assured them. "That's normal. After all the years we spent fighting evil, it-it just became a part of our lives. There's nothing wrong with missing that," he promised and he could see that Piper was starting to see the logic behind his statement. "And we can figure this out. Between Magic School, Paige's charges, and I don't know," he trailed off before he got another idea. "You can still scry for evil. We'll work it back into our lives in a better way," he offered.

"How?" Piper asked quietly and Leo stood in front of the three girls sensing that they needed one of his uplifting speeches.

"Well to start, ever since the fighting evil stopped you three haven't been as close," he said and the three sisters avoided eye contact with each other. "That's normal, but for you three, where your bond lies so deeply in your ties to each other, you need to maintain your relationship in order to stay strong. You could be missing the working together more than the fighting," he pointed out and Piper glanced at Phoebe feeling that Leo may be onto something.

"And just as you were all getting adjusted to normal life Oriax appeared," Leo continued, and Piper sighed knowing that he was right. "And it reminded you how it felt to do good together and rely on the Power of Three. Rely on your sisters. We need to stay in each others' lives," Leo concluded. "Otherwise we'll never be able to reconcile our old lives with these new ones."

* * *

"So tomorrow we all have lunch," Phoebe summarized and the three sisters nodded before Phoebe hugged Piper and then Paige. "Leo's right. We haven't been as close. That's going to change," she promised and Piper's lips curled up in a slight smile.

"Yes it is," Paige agreed and Leo smiled down at Piper who was feeling more at ease since the four of them talked in the kitchen. Leo had put things in perspective, just as he always did, and they realized that in time they would find a way to make things work in their new lives just as they had with their old lives.

"Okay it's late," Phoebe said sadly as she took Coop's hand. "We should go," she sighed before both her sisters and Leo said goodnight and they beamed to the condo.

"We should go too Babe," Henry said and Paige nodded.

"Well, see you tomorrow," Paige said giving Piper one last hug before grabbing Henry's hand and orbing them to their apartment.

"And just like that everything with Oriax is over," Piper muttered as Leo walked closer to her and wrapped an arm around her waist. "Everything except the dishes," Piper sighed and Leo followed her into the kitchen to help her clean up. "This is one of those things about a normal life I could really do without."

* * *

Phoebe rolled over slightly in bed as her dream took over her mind. She was exhausted and had fallen asleep the second her head had hit the pillow. Coop was next to her, but Phoebe's dream was all consuming. Gradually her dream became even more realistic, and with a gasp she suddenly sat up in bed wide awake. Still breathing heavily Phoebe realized that the dream had turned into a premonition and the weight of the situation still hadn't settled into her mind.

"What's wrong?" Coop asked in a sleep hazed voice.

"Coop," Phoebe said shakily and he sat up, becoming more awake at the tone of her voice. "Take me to the manor," she insisted throwing the covers off her body.

"Phoebe, it's early," he protested seeing that it wasn't even seven in the morning yet.

"This isn't over," she whispered and Coop looked at her with wide disbelieving eyes. "I don't know what's happening, but it's just getting started."


	12. Chapter 12

**Again, sorry for the wait, but this was a REALLY important chapter for me to get right. It moves the story into the next main event and I'm beyond excited to hear what you all think. Please leave a review for me!**

Ch. 12

"What did you see, Phoebe?" Piper asked as the six of them settled in the living room. After word had gotten around that Phoebe had had a premonition, Henry and Phoebe called in sick to work and Leo decided not to go into Magic School that day. Phoebe shrugged and they all waited impatiently for her to elaborate.

"I don't know exactly," she told them as she took a sip of her coffee. "I was with a woman. I was in front of her so I couldn't see her too well. She was brunette, probably an innocent, and we were in the entryway there," she gestured near the staircase of the house. "A demon threw an energy ball, and I ran in front of the woman to protect her, but I got hit and…I died," she said slowly as she stared into her coffee rather than at her sisters.

"Did you see the demon? Maybe we can ID him from the book," Paige offered but Phoebe shook her head.

"He was human. Pretty tall, dark hair, dark eyes…" she elaborated and Henry spoke up next.

"Do you think it's Oriax?" he asked and everyone was relieved when Piper and Leo both shook their heads.

"No," Piper said confidently. "We definitely vanquished him. He exploded everywhere. A cleanup like we had last night in the basement could only be the result of a vanquish," she reasoned and Leo agreed.

"And even if you hadn't vanquished him, after your last attack he would have retaliated in his most powerful form," Leo explained. "And that wouldn't be human."

"So this is probably just a regular demon," Paige surmised and Phoebe nodded but couldn't shake the feeling that it was more than that.

"Why now?" Piper asked aloud and Leo shrugged having been wondering the same thing himself. "I mean, after all this time. And why come after us? Now, when we're arguably stronger than ever?"

"Maybe they want the nexus?" Paige suggested and Piper rolled her eyes.

"But they know going after it with us protecting it is like suicide for them!" Piper exclaimed and Henry smiled to himself at her confidence. "Don't they know who we are?"

"It feels good to be back in the game, doesn't it?" Phoebe asked and Paige cocked her head to the side before placing her hands on her hips.

"It's like we never left," she sighed wistfully and Piper smiled slightly.

"And probably never will," she added and the three sisters smiled at each other in silent acknowledgment of their conversation from the night before. They had been complaining that they missed the fast paced lifestyle of fighting evil, and now they were back at it. Their longing for their demon fighting days wasn't what they had expected, but it was what made them who they were.

Leo couldn't help but smirk at the shocked look on Coop's face when Phoebe had admitted that it felt good to be back. Leo had always known Phoebe loved magic too much to give it up to the extent that Coop expected her to.

"Are you sure it wasn't just a dream, Phoebe? The premonition?" Coop asked hesitantly and Phoebe looked at him.

"I know the difference between a dream and a premonition at this point, Coop," she said almost coldly and Coop backed off knowing he had offended her by doubting her powers.

"Do you know when it happened?" Piper asked and Phoebe sighed.

"Soon," she told them. "I think it was later today. Maybe tomorrow," she guessed and Piper nodded.

"Okay, so we can't leave you alone in the manor until we figure out who this guy is," Piper said. "We stick together no matter what," she asserted and Phoebe and Paige immediately agreed. "Now, about that innocent. How do we find her?"

"Maybe she finds us?" Paige offered hopefully and Piper shrugged.

"We can dream," she muttered taking a sip from her coffee mug. "Okay. We can't sit around here all day waiting for an innocent that may or may not show up," she said and Phoebe sighed as she ran a hand through her hair that she had barely bothered to brush that morning in her haste to get to her sisters.

"I need to ID the demon," Phoebe said as she stood to head to the attic. Paige and Piper began to follow her out of habit, and the three of them ascended the stairs in a practiced silence. When they pushed the attic door open and headed for the book, a sense of calm washed over them. Doing this together…it felt right.

Phoebe carefully opened the book and flipped through the pages as Piper and Paige each peered over one of her shoulders. There wasn't much either of them could do until Phoebe recognized something from her premonition, but this was their process and they were going to stick to what they had always done.

"I hate when one of us dies in my premonitions," Phoebe announced as she turned the pages of the book. "It's very unsettling. Why can't I ever get a premonition of nice things?" she asked in a frustrated tone. "Like happy children playing in the grass?" she exclaimed gesturing wildly with one of her hands and Paige had to step back to avoid being hit.

"You did," Piper reminded her. "With the Avatars' utopia and world peace," she smiled brightly. "Before we destroyed it," she said as Paige laughed at the irony of Piper's statement.

"Okay, let's just focus on finding this demon," Phoebe said gesturing to the book. "After beating Oriax I'd rather not die by an energy ball," Phoebe told them and Piper had to acknowledge that an energy ball would be an anticlimactic way to go. "I don't think he's in here. At least not in his human form," she concluded as she reached the end of the book. As she closed it, the three sisters took a small step back and turned slightly so they were facing each other.

"What do you think he's after?" Paige asked and Phoebe shrugged.

"The book?" she offered.

"Maybe the nexus?" Paige suggested.

"Or to kill us," Piper added in her usual cutting tone.

"How about all three?" they heard in an ominous tone before a demon shimmered into the attic. He looked to be human, but before any of the girls could react, he had thrown an energy ball towards Paige.

"Energy ball!" she called out and it immediately appeared in her hand before she orbed it back towards the demon. He ducked out of the way at the last second, the energy ball barely grazing him.

"Phoebe, is that the demon?" Piper asked wondering how difficult it would be to vanquish him.

"No," Phoebe replied confidently and Piper sighed as she threw her hands out and blew the demon up. All three of them let out the breath they'd been holding as the demon exploded, and Leo, Henry, and Coop hurried into the attic having heard the commotion.

"What happened?" Leo asked relieved when he saw all three witches were unharmed.

"Oh you know, just the usual," Piper assured him in a casual tone. "Had a nice breakfast, made some coffee, vanquished a demon!" she exclaimed flinging her arms out to the sides for effect.

"Was it the demon from Phoebe's premonition?" he asked and Paige glared at him.

"Yeah, it was that easy," she said sarcastically and Leo look away sheepishly.

"It was a different demon," Phoebe confirmed before she walked back towards the book. "The one from my premonition wasn't in here, but I think the one we just vanquished was," she said before opening it again and flipping towards the back. "Here," she announced and Piper and Paige walked to their positions at her sides again.

"That's him," Piper agreed as she read to herself before summarizing out loud for Leo. "Stolas. It just says he used to be a servant of the Source before Cole. That's it?" she asked in annoyance quickly flipping to the next page in disgust. "Where the hell has he been since?"

"When everyone thought the Source was dead, some of his most loyal, but weaker servants went into hiding," Leo explained as the three witches looked at him. "They didn't have a chance at coming to power, and any demon that took over the Underworld after the Source wouldn't have trusted or needed weak demons who had been loyal to the past Source."

"So how many of these guys are there?" Piper asked and Leo shrugged while shaking his head.

"Nobody really knows. There was infighting and no way to know who actually went into hiding," he told them and Piper sighed wishing they hadn't vanquished this last demon so quickly.

"We need to make one of them talk," Phoebe said as if reading Piper's mind. "Next one that shows up," she said and Paige nodded walking to a shelf to grab a shoebox full of crystals.

"Why would a weak demon attack us alone?" Paige wondered out loud and Piper sighed in annoyance.

"I find it insulting," she admitted as she began to head out of the attic.

"Hmm, I gotta go," Paige said curiously glancing upwards.

"One of your charges?" Leo asked knowingly and she shook her head.

"No. It's the Elders," she told them and they all stared at each other in confusion. What could the Elders possibly have to tell them? The demonic attack seemed fairly run of the mill and nothing that the Elders typically got involved in. "Well, I'll be back," she said with a shrug before orbing off.

"So, what now?" Henry asked feeling slightly out of place since his wife left.

"We look for the innocent," Phoebe said and Piper nodded as the five of them walked downstairs. "I should go into work, Piper you check the club, and anywhere where we may normally run into someone who would need our help," Phoebe said as they started down the stairs that led to the living room.

"Do you really think that's going to work?" Piper asked skeptically and Phoebe shrugged.

"What else are we going to do? Hope she shows up on our doorstep?" she replied and Piper sighed as they reached the landing of the stairs. Piper, Phoebe, and Leo stopped dead in their tracks at the sight in front of them.

Piper felt her breath catch in her throat and Phoebe's cell phone clattered from her hand to the floor. Leo's hand immediately went to Piper's shoulder knowing she would need his support. Standing in their living room was something they had never thought they'd see again.

"Prue?" Phoebe gasped and Piper shook her head vehemently before storming down the rest of the stairs.

"No!" she yelled. "Whoever you are, and whatever sick game you're playing, get the hell out of our house," she said through clenched teeth. She stalked right up to Prue and got in front of her face before continuing. "And tell whatever demon or warlock or whoever you're serving that if ANYONE impersonates our dead sister again they'll pray that we vanquish them!" she threatened and a look of terror came across Prue's face.

"Wh-what are you talking about?" she asked desperately as she quickly backed away from Piper. "Who are you people?" she asked as she bumped into the couch in her haste to get away from the strangers in the house.

"Prue?" Phoebe said again as she hurried down next to Piper. "You don't recognize us?" she asked as she felt a few hopeful tears sting her eyes. Was their sister really back? "We're your sisters," she reminded her with a small smile but Piper cut her off.

"NO, we're not," she said adamantly shaking her head. She pointed at Prue as a few tears burned behind her eyes. "That is NOT Prue," she insisted, her voice cracking before she rushed out of the room.

"Prue," Phoebe stated carefully as she realized that Prue honestly did not recognize them. "Do you remember anything?" she asked and Prue shook her head.

"No. I don't know you. I-I don't know who I am," she admitted and Leo was torn between trying to figure out what was going on with Prue and helping his wife. He knew Piper dealt well with facts, and if he could find out more about Prue, or whoever this was, he would be of more help to Piper. He decided to wait and listen to what Prue had to say, but when he heard a muffled sob come from the kitchen he hurried out of the room.

"Piper," Leo said gently as he entered the kitchen to find her leaning against the island with her arms wrapped around herself. Her head was bent down but he could still see her body shaking slightly.

"Prue is dead," she said firmly but Leo could hear the tears in her voice. He walked over to her and pulled her into his arms. She resisted his embrace, but he knew her well enough to know that she needed him. "She's dead and we ALL had to move on and live without her," she reminded him and Leo felt a few tears sting his eyes as he remembered how difficult it had been for all of them. And it had been hardest on Piper.

"I know," he whispered as she finally wrapped her arms around him. "But we'll figure this out."

"I can't handle seeing her again," she stated and Leo kissed the top of her head understanding where all of this was coming from. She couldn't allow herself to get close to someone just because they looked like her sister.

"She doesn't remember anything," Leo said knowing that Piper needed the truth. "And we don't even know if it is Prue," he told her and she sighed.

"I know," she whispered sadly and Leo held her even tighter. "I don't know if I want it to be."

"I know you're scared to lose her again, but you may have the chance to spend time with your sister again," he pointed out. "Find out who that is in there, and figure this thing out," he encouraged.

"Fine," she whispered before reluctantly stepping out of his embrace and heading back towards the living room. When she got there she saw Phoebe and Prue still standing quite a ways away from each other and not saying anything.

"She doesn't know who she is," Phoebe said wiping away a few tears.

"It could be a trick," Piper pointed out, her voice stronger now and Phoebe nodded sadly. "It might be a demon or a shapeshifter or-"

"Prue," Phoebe finished for her and Piper fell silent. "Freeze her," Phoebe whispered and Piper raised her hands and tried to do just that. When Prue remained unaffected, Phoebe gasped. "Piper she didn't-"

"A lot of demons don't freeze," Piper said and Phoebe nodded forcing herself not to get her hopes up.

"What ARE you people?" Prue asked and Phoebe sighed.

"She keeps asking that," she admitted to Piper who rolled her eyes not in the mood to play whatever game this demon had in mind.

"We're witches. And if you're not a demon, you are too," she said and Prue shook her head.

"Okay," Prue said raising her hands in mock surrender. "I don't know who you are and I may not know who I am, but I definitely do not want to figure it out here. With you," she said and started to head for the door.

"Wait!" Phoebe called out knowing that no matter who this person was, they couldn't let the public see Prue out, alive and well. "You have to stay."

"Don't worry," Piper added as she grabbed her coat off the hook by the door. "I'll go," she offered before opening the door and slamming it shut behind her.

"What happened?" Leo asked hurrying into the living room. "Where's Piper?"

"She left," Phoebe informed him and Leo let out a dejected sigh.

"Should we go after her?" Henry asked but Leo shook his head.

"She needs time to sort this out," he said, his heart breaking for his wife. Prue's death was the one thing in Piper's life that she had never really gotten over, and this recent turn of events was reopening a lot of old wounds.

"What the hell is going on?" Coop finally asked and Prue's eyes lit up.

"Yes, thank you! That's what I would like to know," she agreed and Phoebe shook her head.

"We don't really know," she admitted. "But you're safe here until we figure it out," she assured Prue before walking over to Leo. In a quiet voice so Prue wouldn't hear, she told him what she'd realized only a few moments earlier. "Prue was the innocent in my premonition," she whispered and Leo's eyes widened.

"Are you sure?" he asked and Phoebe nodded. "Piper and Paige weren't here when the demon-"

"I know," Phoebe cut him off. "And they're not here now. We need Paige to come back. But I'm calling her in the kitchen. Prue's freaked out enough. Watch her," she gestured towards Prue and Leo nodded as Phoebe left the room. She hurried into the kitchen and barely waited for the door to swing shut behind her before she yelled in a hushed whisper, "Paige!" After a few seconds when Paige didn't appear she sighed in frustration. She didn't have time for this. "Dammit Paige, this is important," she insisted. At her tone she saw a swirl of blue and white lights and Paige orbed in front of her.

"What is it?" she asked in annoyance at being interrupted but her expression changed immediately at seeing Phoebe's face. "Phoebe, what is it?" she asked, this time her tone laced with concern.

"Um, well, there's two sides to the story," Phoebe began and Paige raised an eyebrow in her direction. "One, our innocent is here and Piper left-"

"Piper left you alone with the innocent even after your premonition?" Paige interrupted and Phoebe nodded. "Why? That doesn't sound like Piper."

"Well, the innocent…is…um, Prue. Or a demon," she rushed to add as Paige's eyes widened in disbelief. "But it looks like Prue and she has no memory of anything at all."

"Okay," Paige said knowing that out of all the sisters she was the one who had the best chance at staying emotionally detached from this. She was the only one who hadn't grown up with Prue. Despite the fact that she desperately wanted to get to know her, she knew she'd have to wait and figure out the magic behind everything first. "Then let's go figure this out," she said and Phoebe relaxed slightly as she was no longer the witch in charge.

"Thanks Paige," Phoebe whispered blinking back tears and Paige only nodded in response. "We can't do this without you."

**So...is Prue back? What do you think? Is it her? If so is she back for good? Let me know what you think and what you want of course. I write to please!**


	13. Chapter 13

Ch. 13

Phoebe stood in front of Prue as she walked through the rest of the house. She wasn't sure if she was waiting for her to remember something from her life or waiting for her to turn around and attack everyone, but she had to do something. When they arrived back in the entryway of the manor and nothing had happened either way, Prue sighed heavily in defeat.

"Maybe I'm not your sister," she finally whispered turning away from Phoebe. Before Phoebe could protest, a demon shimmered in right in front of Prue. When Phoebe heard a terrified gasp from Prue, she whirled around before yelling out for Paige who immediately orbed in. The demon formed an energy ball in his hand and without even thinking, Phoebe shielded Prue's body with her own.

"Energy ball!" Paige yelled and it appeared in her hand before she orbed it to the demon and watched him explode as it hit him in the chest. Paige glanced at Phoebe who nodded slightly to confirm that it had been the demon from her premonition.

"What the hell was that?" Prue asked angrily and Phoebe and Paige looked between each other unsure of how to answer.

"Um, that was nothing you need to worry about right now," Phoebe assured her. "Let's just go sit," she urged before showing her back towards the couch in the living room.

* * *

"How's she doing?" Phoebe asked Leo as she looked at Prue who was sitting on the couch reluctant to speak to anyone. Paige and Phoebe had sent Coop and Henry to Phoebe's condo so they wouldn't overwhelm Prue, and they themselves had just come from the attic having hoped to find something from the book, but had come up empty.

"She's scared," Leo admitted looking between Prue and Phoebe. "Look Phoebe," he said lowering his voice so only her and Paige could hear. "We still don't know if this is Prue," he reminded her and she sighed.

"I know, Leo," she replied raising her voice slightly feeling that this needed to be said. "But Piper already believes she's a demon. I think it's important that at least one of Prue's two sisters believes that she's back," she said not catching the slip of the tongue in her heightened emotional state. As Leo raised his eyebrows at her comment, Phoebe's mouth fell open in shock. "Paige, I'm so sorry," she apologized immediately. "I didn't mean it like that," she said hurriedly.

"It's okay," Paige assured her even though they both knew that it wasn't. "Prue and I didn't know each other," she said quietly with a small forced smile.

"Well maybe now you can," Phoebe pointed out and she nodded half heartedly wondering herself whether or not she believed it was Prue.

* * *

It had been nearly an hour since Piper had stormed out of the house, and Phoebe and Paige had spent the entire time trying to talk to Prue. They weren't sure if they were trying to jog her memory or get her to confess to being a demon, but they were trying their hardest to get to the bottom of this.

"I don't know WHO you people think you are," Prue began as she stood up from the couch for the fourth time that hour. "But-"

"Wait," Phoebe said as she literally forced Prue back onto the couch before sitting on the coffee table in front of her. "It's not safe for you out there right now," she said truthfully. "We need to figure out what's going on."

"What's going on is that I've lost my mind in a house full of people convinced they're witches and wizards, and-"

"Nobody said anything about wizards," Paige retorted and Prue rolled her eyes before sitting back against the back of the couch.

"And believe it or not, we're your family," Phoebe insisted refusing to believe anything else, and Prue snorted in disbelief. Phoebe leaned forward and her eyes met Prue's before she continued. "Come on, Prue. Remember Grams? And when we'd all fight with each other over who stole whose Malibu Barbie?" she asked with a hopeful smile but when Prue shook her head, the hope fell from Phoebe's face. "Think Prue," Phoebe begged as she felt a few tears sting her eyes. "You must remember something. Mom?" she suggested knowing that out of all three of the sisters Prue had the most memories of their mother. "Or dad?" she asked desperately, also aware that despite the fact that Prue and Victor had mended their relationship, Prue might remember the grudge she'd held onto for so many years. When Prue slowly shook her head again, a few tears finally fell from Phoebe's eyes and her hands gently grabbed Prue's. "You don't remember you were my big sister?" she asked in a soft whisper and Prue didn't answer, feeling an inexplicable guilt at not being able to remember.

The three of them fell silent as the front door opened and Piper walked back in. Everyone looked up at her and she only briefly locked eyes with Phoebe and avoided everyone else. She purposely sidestepped Leo knowing that if she made any contact with him she would lose all the control she'd built up over her hour long drive.

She looked over at Prue and had to swallow the lump in her throat at how natural it looked to see her sitting there in the house they'd all grown up in. This was how things were supposed to be. She ignored everyone and walked through the entryway and into the kitchen. She threw her purse and her keys onto the counter and sank into a chair at the table resting her head in her hands. She didn't know how she was supposed to handle this situation.

After quite a while, she took a deep but shaky breath and walked back into the living room. She caught Leo's eyes and he could tell that she had been fighting off tears for hours. She shook her head indicating that she couldn't talk about it and instead looked towards her sisters. She saw them sitting with photo albums open in front of them and she sighed to herself. She stayed standing behind them watching the scene unfold but refusing to be a part of it.

"That was your high school graduation," Phoebe explained pointing to a picture in the photo album Prue had opened on her lap. Phoebe had seated herself next to Prue on the couch and identified each person in all the photographs hoping something would jog Prue's memory.

"So that's Piper?" Prue asked pointing to the image of a high school aged Piper in the photograph.

"Yeah," Phoebe said with a soft laugh. "That's Piper. And there's me," she pointed out. As Prue looked at more and more photos, she eventually came to more recent ones. She found Piper and Leo's wedding album and glanced at Leo.

"You're my brother in law?" she asked and he nodded with a smile before sitting on the other side of Prue on the couch. He could feel Piper glaring at him, but he ignored it knowing that they needed information before they jumped to conclusions. Prue slowly flipped through more photos and Phoebe would briefly explain the important ones. "What about you?" Prue finally asked as she looked up to meet Paige's eyes. "Why aren't you in these?"

"O-oh, um," she stammered knowing that the truth was much more than Prue could handle at the moment. "Well, I'm just a friend of the family," Paige finally said and Prue seemed satisfied with the explanation as she returned to studying the photos. Phoebe looked at Paige and silently communicated an apology to which Paige only gave a slight nod.

"Who's this?" Prue asked as she came to a picture of Wyatt when he was only a few months old. Knowing that even if Prue hadn't lost her memory she wouldn't remember the rest of the events in the photo album, Phoebe considered taking the rest of the photos but stopped as she saw the hopeful look on Prue's face.

"That's Piper and Leo's son Wyatt," Phoebe explained and Piper fought the urge to snatch the photo album from Prue's hands. A demon was looking at baby pictures of her son…

"I wish I could remember," Prue said sadly running the tips of her fingers down the photo. "I don't even remember my sister's wedding," she whispered and Piper had finally had enough. She walked purposefully in front of Prue, Phoebe, and Paige, and glared straight at Prue.

"You wouldn't remember because you're not our sister," she said through clenched teeth. "I don't know who you are," she seethed, feeling the anger course through her and was unable to control it. "But you're NOT PRUE!" she yelled and the lamp on the end table suddenly exploded and Piper sheepishly put her hands at her sides knowing she should have more restraint.

Before anyone could react to the incident, Wyatt orbed in right in front of his mother and Piper felt a few tears fall from her eyes as she bent down to his level. She didn't look up to see Prue's wide, disbelieving eyes, but Phoebe quickly put her hand on Prue's shoulder to calm her down.

"He could sense that you were upset," Leo said softly and Piper picked Wyatt up and held him closely. Leo stood and went to Piper's side knowing that if his son had sensed her grief and felt the need to come to her, then Piper must be feeling even more turmoil than he had thought.

"Hey, his force field isn't up," Paige said suddenly and everyone looked to see that Wyatt was less than three feet from Prue. "Doesn't that mean that Prue's not evil?" she asked and Piper quickly stepped back with Wyatt in her arms.

"It doesn't mean anything," she insisted, but Phoebe's eyes had lit up with an idea. "He just doesn't know…"

"She should touch the book," she said but Piper shook her head. "If she's evil she won't be able to touch it," Phoebe reasoned calmly knowing that Piper was too emotional to think things through.

"We can't just show her the book! That's our entire family history in there and all our…NO! Absolutely not," she said firmly as she walked out of the room and headed upstairs to put Wyatt back in his room.

"This could tell us everything we need to know," Phoebe said excitedly, but Leo felt the need to point out what his wife already knew.

"It will only tell us if she's evil. Not if she's actually Prue," he reminded her and Phoebe sighed but nodded.

"I know Leo," she whispered. "But we have to try," she said and her eyes were glassy with unshed tears. She held his gaze for a moment before he finally conceded.

"Only if Piper agrees," he said and Phoebe nodded. "Then we can have her touch the book and see if she's-"

"Um, hi. Okay, I'm right here," Prue pointed out standing up tired of them acting like she wasn't in the room. "What book?" she asked. "And how the hell did my 'nephew' apparently just appear down here from up there?" she questioned gesturing up the stairs.

"That's part of the uh, witch thing," Paige admitted and Phoebe walked back to Prue.

"You weren't too accepting of it the first time you heard about it either," she told her and Prue just shook her head and sat back down unsure of what else to do.

* * *

Piper entered the attic and walked to the book knowing that she needed to try something. She'd briefly considered asking Phoebe and Paige to join her, but she knew that Phoebe had already made her mind up that Prue was back. Despite the ache in her heart every day since her sister had died, Piper refused to believe that Prue was back. It was impossible. Phoebe had immediately fallen back into baby sister mode, but Piper couldn't allow herself to not be lead witch here. Quietly she did the only thing she could think of. She asked for help.

"_Hear these words_

_Hear my cry_

_Spirit from the other side_

_Come to me_

_I summon thee_

_Cross now the great divide."_

She stood back and watched as a figure appeared in wisps of light, and she sighed in relief as she saw who it was.

"Grams," she greeted with a small, sad smile which Grams returned.

"What's going on my dear? Where are your sisters? Your mother and I have been-"

"You don't know?" Piper asked assuming that if Prue really was back her mother and grandmother would have noticed Prue missing from the spirit realm.

"Know what? We can't watch you girls every minute, you know," she said defiantly and Piper smiled at the familiarity of Grams' banter.

"Prue, or someone that looks just like Prue, is sitting in our living room. With no memory of anything," Piper explained and stood waiting for her grandmother's reaction.

"Right now?" Grams finally asked and Piper nodded.

"Phoebe thinks Prue's back. I think it's a trick," she admitted and Grams looked thoughtful. "Wouldn't you know if Prue was gone from, wherever you guys are?" she asked but Grams shook her head.

"We don't see each other all the time. We all have lives up here," she pointed out and Piper felt herself growing more and more frustrated. "It's possible that we wouldn't have noticed."

"What demon would send something that looks just like Prue?" Piper asked ignoring her grandmother's last comment. "What would they get from that? Are they just trying to hurt us?" she asked her voice rising slightly with each question.

"I don't know, Piper," her Grams said, her voice calming and sympathetic. "But you're not going to find the answer up here with me," she said softly before wisping away and disappearing from the attic.

"Grams!" Piper yelled angrily. "I wasn't finished with you!" she sighed before dropping her head to the book in front of her. Grams was right. She wasn't going to find the answer up here. Hesitantly she picked up the book and headed for the stairs. When she got to the living room she saw Phoebe and Prue still seated on the couch.

Wordlessly, Piper walked over, set the book on the coffee table in front of the couch and sat on the other side of Prue. Paige sat in a chair nearby knowing that Piper was the one that needed to initiate this.

"We need you to try and touch that book," Piper finally said to Prue after everyone sat in a stunned silence for a moment.

"Why?" Prue asked not bothering to act polite and Piper rolled her eyes not feeling up to answering her question.

"Just, humor us," Phoebe begged knowing that Piper could change her mind and snatch the book away at any moment.

Prue shook her head in annoyance, but leaned forward towards the book. Before any of them could react, the book flew forward and into Prue's hands. The four girls stared in disbelief as the triquetra on the cover began to glow and Prue's eyes were wide in shock and terror.

"Did you do that?" Phoebe asked hoping her sister had used her power, but Prue shook her head vehemently.

"She didn't squint her eyes," Piper pointed out having watched Prue very closely during the whole ordeal.

"It just, it just FLEW into my hands!" she exclaimed before dropping it back on the coffee table. "This is not happening," she insisted, but Phoebe had felt her heart leap. Not only had Prue been able to touch the book, but the book had been attracted to her. In Phoebe's mind that only meant one thing. It had to be Prue, but the look on Piper's face told her that she wasn't convinced.

"Piper, in the kitchen. Now," Phoebe insisted and Piper reluctantly stood. "Paige, come on," she said and the three of them hurried out of the room to talk.

"It doesn't mean that she's Prue," Piper said immediately as the three of them stood in a circle in the kitchen, the door still swinging on its hinges behind them.

"Piper, the book flew into her lap. It lit up!" Phoebe exclaimed loudly. "That always means important stuff!" she said desperately but Piper shook her head.

"You don't know what evil can do. They could have found a way to touch the book, or, or something," Piper tried and Phoebe knew that she was refusing to get her hopes up. "It's not Prue," she repeated and Phoebe sighed before turning to Paige for backup. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest, but she shrugged slightly and answered.

"It kinda looks like it's Prue," Paige finally said reluctantly, hating when she had to be a tie breaker between Piper and Phoebe. "I know you don't want to believe that, but it all adds up."

"Piper, look," Phoebe began, but they were interrupted when they heard a loud crash and a groan in the living room. They rushed in to see Leo on the floor with a bloody nose and Prue nowhere to be seen. The front door was wide open and Leo groaned again. Paige hurried over and quickly healed him.

"You let her go?" Piper accused and his eyes widened in exasperated disbelief.

"Well, you know how Prue gets!" he said defensively and continued before Piper could say it wasn't Prue. "She wanted to leave. I tried to stop her and she hit me."

"You should have tried harder," Piper told him and he scoffed.

"What did you want me to do? Hit her back?" he said sarcastically and Piper nodded.

"Yes! That's exactly what I wanted you to do," she replied and he sighed.

"I wasn't going to hit Prue. I mean, she's a girl. And you know I don't like to hit people," he babbled and Piper shook her head wondering how they had gotten themselves into this mess. Just hours ago they'd been wishing they had more magic in their lives.

* * *

"We have to find her," Phoebe stated for third time about half an hour later. "I mean, she could be lost and people can't see her anyways. They think she's dead and-"

"Phoebe, we know!" Piper cut her off before turning to Paige. "You still can't sense her?" she asked but Paige shook her head.

"It's possible that she's not a witch anymore," Leo pointed out and Phoebe cringed at the thought. She couldn't imagine coming back from death and not being a Charmed One. "Or her powers could be dormant from being inactive. In that case no whitelighter could sense her because she's not an active witch," he explained and Phoebe chose to believe that answer for the time being.

"Okay, so what do we do?" Paige questioned looking from Piper to Phoebe to Leo.

"The to call a lost witch spell," Phoebe offered and without waiting for a response she started gathering what they would need. She quickly put rosemary, cypress, and yarrow root into the silver mortar and Piper and Paige sat next to her. Phoebe began to grind the pestle and chanted.

"_Power of the witches rise_

_Course unseen across the skies_

_Come to us who call you near_

_Come to us and settle here."_

Piper couldn't hold back her own tears despite the fact that Phoebe was the one cutting into her palm to let some of the blood spill into the mortar. With a heavy sigh, Piper wiped away her tears and Phoebe continued the spell.

"_Blood to blood, I summon thee_

_Blood to blood, return to me."_

The three sisters stood up and waited unsure of what to expect. They didn't even know that Prue was a witch anymore and if she wasn't, the spell would have no effect. When Prue didn't appear after a few minutes, Leo spoke up.

"If her powers are dormant the spell still might not work," he offered and Phoebe felt herself hoping that was the case. "The spell calls their powers. If her powers aren't active, the spell might not have enough pull to bring her back."

"So what do we do? Go out and look for her?" Paige asked feeling helpless. She felt like she needed to be the one to take charge here. She was the only one who wasn't reeling from the emotions of seeing Prue back from the dead. Despite the fact that she wanted to know her sister, she knew that Piper, Phoebe, and Leo missed Prue more than she did. Phoebe shrugged feeling like she had exhausted all her options and the group fell silent before Piper finally sat down where Phoebe had previously been to cast the spell. Without a word, she opened the book and began her own spell, her voice laced with tears.

"_Hear the words of the witches_

_The secrets we hid in the night_

_The oldest of gods are invoked here_

_The great work of magic is sought,"_

"What's she doing?" Paige whispered to Phoebe who had tears in her eyes as well.

"The to call a lose sister spell," Phoebe replied as she realized that Piper had finally admitted that Prue was back. It was their sister.

"_In this night and in this hour_

_I call upon the Ancient Power_

_Bring back my sister_

_Bring back the first Power of Three."_

As she finished, she wiped away her tears and stood up to see Phoebe in tears as well. Phoebe immediately walked over and wrapped her arms around Piper in a silent thank you, but was distracted as a few white lights appeared in the room. Gradually more appeared, and within a few seconds Prue was standing in the attic.

"It is Prue," Phoebe breathed out in disbelief and Piper slowly nodded finally able to accept what she had tried so hard to deny. "Prue's back!" Phoebe exclaimed with a sob before rushing over and throwing her arms around her oldest, and now very confused sister.

**Okay, so it's Prue! Please leave a quick review and let me know what you think. The story is really kicking up here, I promise! Just wait for the next big twist! I can't wait for it myself. :)**


	14. Chapter 14

**I'd like to thank those of you who have left reviews so far. It's very encouraging for me! Enjoy this chapter. :)**

Ch. 14

"What's going on?" Prue asked as she stepped away from Phoebe's hug. "How did I get here?" she questioned looking around the attic in confusion and fear.

"Magic," Paige answered simply and Prue looked at her skeptically.

"We just proved that you are our sister," Piper explained quietly, and as her eyes met Prue's she had to swallow the lump in her throat. "If you weren't, the spell wouldn't have brought you here."

"So you two are my sisters?" Prue clarified gesturing to Piper and Phoebe who then glanced at each other and then to Paige.

"Well, it's a long story. And you're going to need to have a very open mind," Phoebe said with a kind smile. "We, you, Piper, and me," Phoebe began, "were the Charmed Ones," she stated as she picked up the Book of Shadows and handed it to Prue. "The most powerful good witches of all time."

Carefully, Prue opened the book and carried it over to the couch. She sat down and flipped through some of the pages. She skimmed the contents of the book, falling deeper and deeper into shock. As she saw the pictures of some of the demons, Phoebe, Piper, and Paige could hear Prue's gasps of disbelief and terror, but they allowed her to see what she needed to see without interruption.

"_I'm_ a witch?" Prue asked with a raised eyebrow clearly not believing or trusting her sisters.

"Well, you were," Piper spoke up as she sat next to her sister. "We're not sure what you are now," she said gently. "You see, you…we were fighting a very powerful demon and, well-"

"It was about five and a half years ago," Phoebe interjected and Piper nodded seeing that she had Prue's undivided attention.

"And, well you…died," she finally said knowing that there was nothing that would soften the blow, and Prue's eyes widened at this new information. "That's why we weren't sure that you were our sister when we saw you today. We don't know how you're back," she admitted and the look on Prue's face was one of disbelief and fear.

"So what am I? A ghost? A, a zombie?" she nearly yelled as she practically threw the book onto the floor. Leo quickly picked it up and put it back on the stand where it belonged knowing that this was a lot for Prue to take in at the moment.

"No, you're human," Piper assured her placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. Piper was still struggling to deal with the emotions of having her sister back, but she knew she had to be strong and help figure out what was happening to Prue. If the situation was reversed, she was positive that Prue would put her own feelings aside until she figured out everything that was wrong with Piper, so Piper forced herself to do that for her older sister.

"So am I still a witch?" Prue asked unsure of what she wanted the answer to be.

"We don't know that either," Leo told her as he bent down so he was eye level with Prue. "And we don't know when or if you'll get your memories back," he admitted sadly. "But we do know that you're a part of this family."

"Absolutely," Phoebe agreed with a smile.

"You used to practically run the family," Piper said softly with a smile of her own as her thoughts drifted back to the days before she had become the oldest sister. On Piper's wedding day her mother had told her she was the heart of the family. After Prue had died, she'd had to be the heart, the head, and the soul of the family and it was too much for her. "You were an amazing big sister," she whispered always wishing she had been able to ask Prue for advice on how to be the big sister.

"And we love you and we've missed you," Phoebe rambled. "We'll help you get adjusted again and start a new life if you need to-"

"Okay!" Prue said holding up a hand to stop Phoebe. "Let's just slow down," she ordered and Phoebe smiled to herself. Prue may not have her memories, but she still had her personality.

"Right," Piper said standing up knowing she needed to take control of the situation. Prue was back physically, but not mentally. "Paige," she said turning to her youngest sister. "Go ask the Elders if they know anything about this and how it happened," she said and Paige nodded happily. She was relieved to have an excuse to leave the room. She felt out of place in the family reunion. She had no memories to share with Prue, and no way of helping her get her old memories back.

"Okay, I'll be back," she said before orbing off purposely ignoring Prue's stunned look.

"She's part whitelighter," Phoebe explained and Prue continued looking at her in confusion. "It's kind of like a guardian angel."

"Oh, of course. A guardian angel," Prue said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes.

"Well you sure haven't changed Prue," Piper pointed out and Leo smirked feeling his heart swell as he imagined having Prue back in all their lives. He didn't know how it was possible, but she was here, and he was thrilled.

"Maybe we should check with Grams," Phoebe suddenly suggested and Piper looked at her sheepishly.

"I already did," she admitted. "Before. She didn't know anything," Piper said and Phoebe sighed sadly feeling like their best shot at getting information had failed.

"We have a grandmother?" Prue asked and Piper opened her mouth to answer but was unsure of what to say.

"Um, well she died too," Phoebe finally answered. "It's another witch thing."

* * *

"Sooo, did I have a job?" Prue asked feeling like information about her normal life would be a little easier to swallow than more magical memories.

"Yeah," Phoebe said excitedly as they sat in the conservatory. "You used to work at a museum, then at an auction house, and then you were a photographer for 415 Magazine. You liked that one the best," Phoebe told her and Prue smiled, liking the sound of being a photographer.

"And what about you guys?" Prue asked and Piper walked in from the kitchen holding a coffee mug and handing it to Prue.

"This is how you used to take it," Piper said shyly still feeling insecure around Prue. Even though Prue didn't have her memories, Piper found herself wanting to fall back into the middle sister role.

"Thank you," Prue said taking the coffee and taking a sip. "It's perfect," she smiled and Piper sat down relieved that Prue liked her coffee the same way. "So, what do you guys do? Besides fight evil?" Prue asked feeling oddly at ease despite the fact that she was in a room with three strangers, two of which claimed to be her sisters.

"I'm an advice columnist," Phoebe answered tucking her legs up under her on the wicker chair. "And Piper runs a club called P3. P3. Prue, Piper, and Phoebe," Phoebe pointed out with a smile which was mirrored on Piper's face.

"We were close," Prue said. It was more of a statement than a question, but Leo felt the need to step in.

"You were the closest," he said with a wide smile. "The Power of Three," he elaborated and Phoebe smiled at the memories this conversation was bringing up.

"And I have two nephews?" Prue questioned having walked by the nursery on the way down from the attic.

"Wyatt and Chris," Piper answered happily. "Also half whitelighter," she explained knowing Prue's next question would be how Wyatt had orbed downstairs earlier. Prue glanced between Piper and Leo making the connection and Leo chuckled.

"I used to be a whitelighter," he clarified. "But I quit to be with my family," he explained knowing he was glazing over the truth but also knowing the full truth could wait until Prue got her memory back.

"And what about you, Phoebe?" Prue asked turning towards her. "Do you have a man in your life?" she asked teasingly and Phoebe smiled widely and let out a soft laugh.

"I do," she confirmed happily. "My boyfriend Coop. He's a cupid," she stated and laughed at the expression on Prue's face. "No chubby babies, diapers, or arrows," she assured her quickly. "But he does help people find love," she explained and Prue shook her head wondering why that surprised her after everything else she had heard that day.

Their conversation was cut short as Paige orbed back in and all four sets of eyes were on her waiting for an explanation. With a sigh Paige launched into the theory the Elders had given her.

"Well, they don't really know how she's back either, but it's definitely Prue," she stated and Phoebe grinned even wider at that and Piper let out a small sigh of relief. Even though they had already known this because of the spell, it was good to have confirmation. "And it doesn't look like it's a temporary thing either," Paige continued knowing this would thrill her sisters. "But they don't know about her memory."

"So she's back for good?" Piper questioned and Paige nodded with a smile and Phoebe launched herself out of the chair and hugged Prue tightly. This time Prue returned the hug. Even though she didn't remember being related to Phoebe, she still felt connected to her and Piper somehow. As Phoebe unwrapped her arms from Prue's neck, Piper stood up and slowly walked towards Prue. "I'm glad you're back," she whispered with tears in her eyes as she gently wrapped her in a hug. "I know you don't remember, but I missed you," she said softly and Prue felt a few tears sting her eyes at the emotion in Piper's voice.

"Do the Elders know why or how Prue's back?" Leo asked as Piper slowly stepped away from Prue and turned back towards Paige.

"Not really, but I do have one theory of my own," she told them and they stood silently waiting for her to elaborate. "Magic always have consequences, right?" she asked and Phoebe nodded wondering what she was getting at. "What if, when we restored the nexus, we also restored Prue?" she suggested and Piper and Phoebe's eyes widened.

"That's not a consequence!" Phoebe exclaimed. "That's a blessing," she said happily and Paige smiled with a nod.

"And now I can finally meet my, um Prue," Paige agreed and Phoebe decided right then that they needed to tell Prue the truth about Paige. Apparently Piper agreed because she spoke up before Phoebe could.

"Paige isn't a friend of the family," she said and Prue turned to look at her. "She's our half sister," she explained and Prue's eyes widened.

"But I thought it was the Power of _Three_?" she said and Piper nodded.

"We didn't know about Paige until after you died. After our parents split up, our mom had an affair with her whitelighter and well, we have Paige," she said gesturing towards the youngest sister.

"Whitelighters and witches aren't allowed to be together," Leo jumped in, and Prue opened her mouth to object as she looked between Leo and Piper. "We're a long story," he admitted waving his hand in dismissal before continuing on with his point. "They had to hide Paige's birth from the magical community, but when you died…well the Power of Three had to live on."

"Wow," Prue said turning to face Paige who was standing silently waiting to see what her reaction would be. "So we've never met?" she asked and Paige shyly shook her head. "Well, now we can," Prue said with a confidence that Piper had always been envious of. "At least I have one sister who I didn't lose any memories of," she said good naturedly as she walked over and hugged Paige tightly.

* * *

"Are you sure you're okay here, Prue?" Piper asked for the third time as Prue nodded encouragingly.

"I'll be fine," she assured her sister. "Besides, I'd like to get to know Henry and Coop," she said gesturing to the two men who had just arrived. "And it's nice to be able to talk to someone without worrying about what I've forgotten," she admitted with a sad smile and Piper nodded in understanding.

"Well we'll be right in the kitchen if you need anything," she told her and Prue nodded as she sat on a chair in the living room with Henry and Coop seated on a nearby couch. Phoebe, Paige, Piper, and Leo reluctantly left the room knowing that they needed to discuss magical things and that Prue had already dealt with enough for one day. When they finally did reach the kitchen, Phoebe turned to Paige.

"So what did the Elders want before Prue showed up?" she asked as she remembered that Paige had been called away even before they had been distracted by the sudden arrival of their sister.

"Riiight," Paige replied almost wishing Phoebe hadn't brought that up. "They say that they can feel a great power shift towards the side of evil," she repeated what she had heard that morning.

"What's new?" Piper asked wryly and Paige shrugged her shoulders knowing that they had heard that a lot from the Elders.

"They believe that demonic forces are banding together to form some sort of council to take the place of the Triad," Paige explained and Leo sighed.

"It makes sense," he stated and Piper rolled her eyes. "No individual demon is strong enough to rule alone like the Source did and now that the Triad is gone, smaller groups are able to rise to power without the threat of being taken out right away," he said and Piper shook her head in annoyance.

"Remember yesterday when we were so eager to get back into this?" she asked and Phoebe laughed softly. "Remind me why that is again," Piper begged humorlessly.

"Well they can't be more powerful than the Triad, right?" Paige asked hopefully and Leo shrugged.

"Probably not yet," he agreed and the three sisters nodded in agreement and relief. "But if demons are cooperating, there's no telling what types of power plays they'll have in store. And it's no doubt they'll come after you," he told them and Phoebe let out a frustrated groan. "And the nexus," he added. "In fact, restoring the nexus probably sped their process along," he told them and Piper shook her head.

"I still think Prue should be our priority. We don't know enough about this council to do anything yet anyways," she said and everyone fell into an uncomfortable silence as they considered the possibilities. Paige shifted her weight from one foot to the other, unsure of what she should say. Finally, Leo broke the silence.

"I think you're right," he agreed knowing that not only would the sisters concentrate better with Prue by their side, but they could use her help against any new demonic force.

* * *

"So you're just a mortal?" Prue clarified and Henry nodded and Prue let out a sigh of relief. "How did you handle all of…this?" she asked gesturing around the house and Henry laughed softly.

"I was pretty overwhelmed," he admitted knowing that Prue must be feeling that way now. "But I love Paige, and her sisters," he added, "and I wouldn't trade my life for the world."

"You know Prue," Coop interjected as her attention turned to focus on him. "Even if I didn't know it for a fact, I can feel that the people in this house love you," he told her and her face was serious. "As a cupid I can sense these things," he stated simply. "And these people, your family, they love you."

"I want to love them too," she whispered and looked up as she saw Phoebe, Paige, Piper, and Leo come back into the room. They began to say something, but stopped short as a figure of a man gradually began to appear in the center of the room in a mass of light and dust.

When he was completely solid, he stood in confusion before turning and stopping as he saw Phoebe, Paige, and Piper staring at him in utter shock and disbelief. He was about to open his mouth to ask what was going on when Piper broke the silence.

"Oh crap!" she exclaimed in unhappy recognition as she began to comprehend what was happening.

"We should have known this would happen," Paige grumbled, and Coop could see the look of pained anguish on Phoebe's face as she choked out the next word.

"Cole?"

**So...Cole's back! What do you think? Let me know. Leave a quick review please!****  
**


	15. Chapter 15

**Sorry for the delay in the update. I'm really excited to write the next few chapters. I love writing Cole! Also, I'd like to thank those of you who left a review for any of the previous chapters. They're very helpful and motivating. I can see that I have quite a few hits/visitors to the story, but only a few reviews. Anonymous reviews (those of you who don't have a account) are great too! Anyways, enjoy!  
**

Ch. 15

"What the hell is going on here?" Cole muttered as he slowly turned around in a circle taking in his surroundings. "Who are you people?" he asked his eyes darting warily from one person to the next.

"You don't know who you are?" Coop questioned as he stood and walked over to Phoebe and wrapped an arm protectively around her shoulders.

"No," Cole trailed off as his eyes darkened at the display of dominance by Coop. "But right now I'm more concerned about who all of you are," he told them and Phoebe shook her head in disbelief.

"This can't be happening," she said quietly as she put her hand on her face. "It just can't be," she murmured before Piper spoke up.

"It must be the same thing that happened to Prue," she reasoned and Leo nodded his agreement. "Okay," she said turning to address Cole directly. "Your name is Cole and we're going to explain all of this as soon as we figure it out," she promised as she glanced quickly at Phoebe who was leaning against Coop. "Sit there by Prue," she told Cole gesturing to a chair near her oldest sister. "She doesn't know who she is either. So…talk amongst yourselves," she offered before grabbing Leo's elbow. "Kitchen. Now," she insisted to Phoebe and Paige.

Piper couldn't help but notice that Coop trailed closely behind Phoebe and she knew that he was worried about how she was handling Cole's return. As the five of them gathered back in the kitchen, Paige turned to Leo.

"How is this happening?" she asked and Leo shrugged.

"I have no idea!" he told her and Piper sighed as she ran a hand through her hair. Phoebe was still silent and Coop had barely taken his eyes off of her since Cole had appeared.

"What do we do?" Phoebe finally asked and Coop squeezed the hand he had been holding.

"I don't think we can tell Cole the whole truth like we did with Prue," Piper stated and Phoebe immediately agreed. "We don't even know what he is. If he's human, a demon, or-"

"I know," Phoebe interrupted not able to hear the different possibilities of what he could have returned as.

"So we can tell him that we're witches and that we knew him," Piper said. "We can tell him we knew him as the district attorney and as a friend and just leave it at that," she suggested and Phoebe nodded indicating that the story was fine with her.

"So as far as Cole knows, no Belthazor, no Cole and Phoebe, no Source, no demon baby, no wasteland driven insanity?" Paige summarized and Piper nodded. "So just a slightly altered truth," Paige muttered with a humorless smile before moving on to the next topic.

"Okay, Paige you need to go talk to the Elders. Bring Leo. This is important and he's more…diplomatic," she stated knowing that Paige had a tendency to get sarcastic and annoyed with the Elders. "Find out if anyone else is going to show up in our living room. We need to be prepared if demons start appearing again."

"Yeah we wouldn't want the source of all evil showing up in our living room!" Paige exclaimed sarcastically, and out of the corner of her eye Piper saw Phoebe flinch at Paige's comment. Piper glared at Paige who had the grace to look sheepish and her shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry Phoebe," she told her and Phoebe shook her head.

"It's fine," she assured Paige even though they all knew that Phoebe didn't need any reminders of Cole's past. "Piper's right. We need to know if any other demons are going to come back," she stated, her voice not giving away any of the emotions reeling through her body at the moment.

"Okay," Paige nodded before grabbing Leo's hand and orbing off. Phoebe made sure to keep her eyes averted as they orbed, not feeling up to squinting at the brightness of the lights.

"Let's get this over with," Phoebe said quietly before stepping away from Coop and heading back into the living room where she saw Prue and Cole laughing together like old friends.

"Well there's something you don't see every day," Piper muttered and Phoebe smirked in spite of herself at the unexpected sight in front of her.

"I can't wait to tell Prue she laughed with him once she gets her memory back," Phoebe said and Piper laughed slightly and didn't notice the pained look on Phoebe's face. Seeing Cole happy reminded her of the good times they had shared. The end had been filled with so much pain and torment that it was easy to remember the entire relationship that way, but the way his eyes would crinkle when he laughed was one of the many good things she'd forgotten about him.

Henry glanced up in relief when they reentered the room having felt uncomfortable left to entertain two people he'd never met that had no idea who they were. He had heard bits and pieces of information about Phoebe and Cole's relationship from Paige, but he didn't know many details. He could tell by the look on Phoebe's face that she was conflicted by Cole's presence. He noticed Coop squeeze Phoebe's hand reassuringly, but at the moment there wasn't much that could help the witch sort through her feelings.

"Did we know each other?" Prue asked gesturing towards Cole who looked at Piper and Phoebe questioningly.

"Um, yes," Piper answered hesitantly as she walked farther into the living room with Phoebe and Coop trailing behind her. "But we need to tell Cole what's going on," she stated knowing that explaining Prue and Cole's relationship was a task for another day.

"Well it seems we all know each other?" he asked and even as Piper nodded she regretted sending Paige away before she'd had this conversation with Cole. She knew it would be unfair to ask Phoebe to help, but she didn't know how to do it herself.

"You were a…friend of the family," Piper told him feeling like she was making a mockery of their entire situation by calling Cole a friend of the family. He had been so much more. He had literally been family at one point. "I'll just start at the beginning."

"I'm going to go get some coffee," Phoebe offered suddenly as she exited the room and quickly headed back towards the kitchen. Piper looked after her wondering if she should follow, but a look from Coop kept her rooted to the spot as she watched him hurry into the kitchen after his girlfriend. Cole's eyes followed them closely and he found himself unable to look away until she disappeared from sight.

Phoebe shoved the swinging door to the kitchen open and rushed inside letting it nearly slam into Coop behind her. Without a glance in his direction, she placed her hands against the island in the middle of the room and leaned against it breathing heavily. She squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head trying to clear her thoughts but was finding it increasingly difficult.

"Phoebe," Coop began, but as she cringed at the sound of his voice, he quieted and they stood in silence. He maintained a distance of a few feet between them, unsure of how to proceed. He'd always known that Phoebe's relationship with Cole had been the one wound that had never really healed. A part of him had wondered if she'd ever come to terms with the fact that she'd actually loved a demon. At the time she thought his human half had been in control, but clearly the evil in him was too strong. Coop understood that now and he believed that Phoebe did too, but he hated that he had been unable to prevent her from feeling that pain. Even if he hadn't known her at the time, it killed him to know that anyone had hurt her that much.

"I was so happy to have Prue back," she finally whispered and Coop took a hesitant step towards her. When she didn't flinch, he closed the distance until he was next to her and she continued talking. "And then when he showed up I just didn't know what to think."

"Hey," Coop said gently as he put the crook of his index finger under her chin to get her eyes to meet his. "As soon as we get his memory back we'll send him packing, alright? I won't let him hurt you again, Phoebe. I promise," he said with a sincerity that made Phoebe's heart melt. A few tears stung her eyes as she stepped into Coop's embrace. His arms held her tightly as her breathing began to return to normal. "You're so much stronger now than you were then," he reminded her and she silently admitted that he was right. Everything that she had gone through with Cole and after his final vanquish had made her a stronger person. If anyone could handle this, it was her.

* * *

"Alright, you said you'd start at the beginning," Cole prodded and Piper took a deep breath before launching into the tale.

"Phoebe, Paige, and I are witches," she stated simply deciding to come out with it right away. "We're good witches with powers. Like this," she said as she flung her hand out and blew up a new toy truck that Wyatt hated. "Among other things," she added and she saw Cole's wide eyes, Prue's smug smile, and Henry's sympathetic expression.

"Witches?" Cole asked and Piper nodded.

"We met you at a crime scene where we'd been fighting evil," she continued to explain leaving out unnecessary details. "You were the district attorney," she said and Cole gave a slight nod of approval at his career choice. "Later you worked at some swanky law firm, but you were a good lawyer," she told him feeling like if she stroked his ego enough he may be more receptive to the next bit of information she was about to drop.

"But?" Cole prompted getting exasperated with how long it was taking Piper to tell him the truth. He was finding her story difficult to believe, but he wasn't sure what else could be true. Prue had already prepared him for the conversation, but he still was surprised to hear the words come so easily from Piper's mouth.

"But," Piper continued as she brought her hands up in front of her suddenly slightly self conscious. "You have been dead for about four years now," she said gently and Cole just shook his head and leaned back against the chair glancing up at the ceiling. "Prue had been dead for over five years."

"Unbelievable," he muttered. "What are you going to tell me next?" he snorted in disgust. "That I was brought back to life by a kiss from a magic princess?" he mocked and Piper sighed having worried he would take it this way.

"Of course not," she assured him. "But you were brought back to life by magic of some kind. And we don't know why or how you lost your memory, but you and Prue both need to work on getting them back," she said simply. "With all the demons we fight, especially in this house, we can't have you two running around oblivious to the magical world!" she insisted raising her voice slightly to make her point. "So the _second_ Paige and Leo get back, you two amnesiacs are due for some major cramming on history," she ordered in a tone that let both Cole and Prue know that they weren't going to get out of it.

When Phoebe and Coop walked back into the living room with no coffee in hand, Cole noticed the distant look in her eyes. He felt a twinge of guilt for a reason he couldn't understand, but he had seen the look on her face when she'd first recognized him. He couldn't help but wonder what had happened while he had still been alive the first time. She looked like she was afraid of him. Had he hurt her? How could he physically hurt one of the most powerful witches of all time? He thought he must be reading too much into things.

The group sat in a painfully uncomfortable silence and Cole again felt responsible for this dynamic. They had said he was a friend, but he'd detected hesitation in Piper's voice that he couldn't quite understand. If he was such a good friend why was everyone walking on eggshells around him? They weren't acting that way around Prue so it must just be him.

Suddenly two figures appeared in bright blue and white lights, and Cole jumped slightly in his seat. He recognized them from earlier, and Prue leaned over.

"They do that sometimes. It's another witch thing apparently," she explained and Cole nodded, still uncertain of this whole situation.

"So, anything?" Piper asked Leo who Cole, thanks to a few photo albums, now knew was her husband.

"They agree that restoring the nexus restored Prue and Cole," Leo replied and when Cole glanced up he saw that Phoebe had been looking at him, but quickly averted her eyes when he caught her.

"So does that mean other demons are going to come back?" Phoebe asked forcing herself to focus on the real problem at hand and not the one she was creating for herself by imagining all the possible scenarios of what could happen if and when Cole got his memory back.

"Probably not," Leo assured them. "Apparently the way the spell was worded and the magic behind it restored power to the manor, not just the nexus," he explained and Piper and Phoebe quickly replayed the spell in their minds.

_Power from under the manor restore_

_Return now to its original form_

"Since Prue and Cole lived in the manor when they died," Paige took over, and with a glance in Cole's direction she saw that his gaze was fixed on Phoebe. Forcing herself to hide her annoyance at this fact, she pressed on with the information. "We also restored them. Permanently," she added and Piper and Phoebe both looked at Prue happily, but refused to look at Cole.

"Cole didn't live here when he died," Phoebe finally said her voice soft and confused. "Does that mean he's not back permanently?" she asked and Paige sighed knowing how difficult this must be for Phoebe.

"He lived here in the reality where we van-, where he died," she corrected, not yet wanting to reveal to Cole that he had been a demon.

"A different reality?" Cole spoke up and Piper waved him off.

"Long story. Not now," she dismissed before turning back to Paige and Leo.

"So they're both back," she confirmed. "For good?" she asked and they both nodded. Piper looked over at Cole who was still stealing glances at Phoebe every now and then and she sighed to herself knowing that could cause problems later. "Then we need to help them get their memories back."

"Neither of you can leave the house," Phoebe suddenly spoke up although she still avoided eye contact with Cole. "Everyone thinks you're dead. If they see you again before we figure out what to tell them, our secret could be exposed," she explained and Piper, Paige, and Leo nodded their agreement. "So you have to stay here or have Paige orb you somewhere safe," she finished and Prue and Cole nodded since they had no other place to go anyways.

* * *

"I guess I'll go start dinner," Piper announced a few hours later before she made her way to the kitchen. Leo had gone upstairs to spend some time with the boys, Paige and Henry were in the attic with the book trying to find some information that could help restore Prue and Cole's memories, and everyone else remained in the living room.

Prue got up and followed Piper feeling the need to do something normal and helping to cook dinner seemed like the perfect thing. As she walked past Phoebe, something occurred to her and she glanced at Coop. She wasn't sure what possessed her to do it, but the thought that it was part of a memory starting to come back convinced her to go with the impulse.

"Coop, could you help me for a minute?" she asked and Coop looked startled. He glanced down at Phoebe worried about leaving her alone with Cole, but knowing he couldn't verbalize that in front of him. "I need you in the kitchen," Prue lied and Phoebe suddenly found herself hating her oldest sister. She tried to communicate silently to Prue with her eyes, but Prue was purposely avoiding her gaze.

"Um, okay," Coop finally relented as he slowly stood up and walked towards Prue. He repeatedly glanced back towards Phoebe as he left the room and she nodded slightly indicating that she would be okay. As Coop and Prue disappeared around the doorway, Phoebe had no choice but to focus her attention on Cole for the first time in years.

He looked the same as he had the last time she'd seen him. He hadn't changed a bit, although that shouldn't surprise her because Prue looked exactly the same also. Apparently you didn't age when you were dead. Suddenly she was brought to attention by Cole's voice.

"Phoebe," he said and she felt her breath catch in her throat at how familiar her name sounded coming from his lips. The way he said it…it was unlike anybody else. He may have lost his memory, but he still sounded exactly the same when he spoke. "Are you alright?" he asked seeming genuinely concerned. "You seem-"

"I'm fine," she answered automatically although she could see that he wasn't buying her lies for a second. He never had.

"Well, good," he replied after a moment's hesitation and Phoebe was relieved that he had dropped it. "I'd hate to upset you," he said with a polite smirk that Phoebe once had committed to memory and since forced out of her mind.

"Y-you didn't," she assured him as she took a deep breath and tried to control her emotions. Cole was back. For good. Or maybe she should just say permanently since she never really had been sure if he was good or not.

**Well, let me know what you think. Just hit that button and leave a quick review. Thoughts? Comments, criticisms? Whatever you'd like to tell me I'm willing to hear. I'd also like to know if you think I've captured Cole so far. He's my favorite Charmed character so I want to make sure he's not OOC or anything.  
**


	16. Chapter 16

**Sorry for the wait for the update. I had some trouble writing this one. Let me know what you think.**

**And another thanks to all of you who left reviews!  
**

Ch. 16

"So are we still going with the theory that the spell that restored the nexus restored Prue and Cole?" Piper asked as all eight of them sat down to dinner.

"It seems to be the most logical," Leo reasoned as he passed the bread basket towards Henry who passed it to Paige without taking a slice.

"And we're sure no other demons are going to be restored either?" Paige double checked with a raised eyebrow before grabbing a slice of bread and handing the basket to Prue.

"Well we can never be positive, but it seems like the only things that were restored were magical powers that belong to the manor," Leo explained as the bread made its way to Cole. "So that's limited to the nexus and any magical being that lived and died in the house. So this should be it," Leo gestured towards Prue and Cole, but Piper looked up from where she had been cutting her steak.

"Not if that's the case," she said and Leo looked at her questioningly. "There's someone else," she said quietly unsure of whether or not she should even voice her thought.

"Who?" Leo asked waiting for Piper to answer but Phoebe beat her to it.

"Grams," Phoebe replied and Leo let out a soft sigh. "I know mom didn't die at the manor, but Grams did. So why isn't she back?" Phoebe questioned. She felt herself wishing she could see her grandmother again, yet she knew if she wasn't back by now she wasn't coming back. She had died before Prue and Cole, but the people seemed to be reappearing in the order they died in. If Grams had been going to be restored she would have appeared first.

"Grams didn't die a magical death," Leo answered and Piper and Phoebe nodded in disappointed acknowledgment of this fact. "So even though the nexus was restored, there was nothing magical about her death, so magic couldn't bring her back. The restoration restored the magic, but the magic wasn't what died. The human aspect of her died," he reminded them gently and Piper took a deep breath.

"Do you ever wonder if the reason she died the way she did was because she was about to strip our powers?" Piper asked and Phoebe and Leo looked up at her in surprise unsure of how to respond. "I know she was sick, but she was supposed to have more time. Do you think she died because she had to be stopped before she stripped us of her powers?" Piper elaborated and Paige let out a low whistle as she considered the theory. She had been told the story of how Grams had been on the way to give the girls the power stripping potion when she died on the way down the stairs, but it had never occurred to her that that was the reason her grandmother had died the way she did. The table stayed silent, one half having never met the woman and the other unsure of the answer.

"Honestly?" Leo finally asked and Piper nodded slightly indicating that she wanted to hear his honest opinion. "Yes," he admitted. "I think that's probably why she died when she did."

"Me too," Piper said softly feeling like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders now that she had voiced what had been on her mind for years. "I just wish she had trusted that we would be able to handle it," she said quietly before returning her attention to her dinner.

The table fell back into silence for a few moments, all of them unsure of what to do or how to proceed with the evening. The meal was delicious, but the polite compliments to Piper's cooking were hardly enough to keep conversation flowing.

Prue found her gaze wandering around the dining room wondering if something would catch her eye and remind her of her old life. She saw unfamiliar wallpaper, a china cabinet, and the full dining room table, but nothing struck a chord in her. She sighed internally before she shoved a forkful of carrots into her mouth. She glanced at Coop and smiled slightly as she saw the concern in his eyes for Phoebe. That man had more love in his heart than any person Prue had ever met. Not that she could remember…but there were some things you just felt.

She was still struggling to wrap her head around the idea of having three sisters, let alone three sisters who were witches. She forced herself not to think too hard about the fact that she had been a witch herself. It didn't seem like she had any powers herself anymore and that suited her just fine. She was having enough trouble readjusting to life as a mortal, and she was positive that magical powers would only complicate her life further.

With a sigh she wondered what her life would have been like if she had never died. She would have been able to meet her half sister Paige. She would finally have that chance now, but she had missed out on her learning to be a witch. Prue felt a terrible sense of regret at having missed the opportunity of teaching her the craft. She had also missed the birth and the first few years of her nephews' lives. She forced these negative thoughts out of her head and thanked whatever magic that brought her back for giving her a second chance at life. She wouldn't waste it.

Cole shoveled food into his mouth feeling as if he hadn't eaten in years. Although, considering the situation, that was a distinct possibility. He stayed quiet throughout the meal, preferring to observe the people he had apparently once known rather than engage them in conversation. He saw Paige, Piper, Leo, and Henry engaging in typical conversations. Sure some of them involved magic and dead relatives, but from what he could tell, they were the typical dinner topics of the household. He glanced at Prue and saw that she was hanging on their every word trying to remember all the details that she could.

Then his attention turned to Coop and Phoebe. Coop had barely taken his eyes off Phoebe long enough to take a sip of his wine, and Cole had to fight the urge to roll his eyes. He wasn't sure what it was about Coop that he didn't like, but there was just something about the cupid that really rubbed him the wrong way. He decided to trust his instinct. Maybe it was a memory fighting to come back. Or maybe he'd never met the guy and he just hated the way he looked at Phoebe like she was the air that he breathed.

As Cole dared a glance at Phoebe, he thought he noticed her trying to avoid Coop's gaze. She would meet his eyes, but only for the briefest of moments. She answered his questions with brief, often one word responses, but always with a smile. There was definitely something going wrong between them, and despite the fact that Coop could feel the distance, it seemed like he was at a loss for what to do about it.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After dinner was over, Piper and Leo were in the kitchen tending to Chris and Wyatt while Paige, Henry, and Prue worked on the cleanup. Cole had purposely slid into the conservatory as they began cleaning up and waited for Phoebe and Coop to step into the living room. He knew they'd been waiting to have a conversation, and a part of him couldn't help but eavesdrop. He was aware that it was an invasion of their privacy, but he pushed it away forcing himself to remember that these people were essentially strangers to him. And he didn't have his memory so for all Cole knew, he was just a nosey bastard who always eavesdropped on conversations. He could live with that. So as soon as the dining room was clear, he tucked himself behind a wall and listened to what Coop and Phoebe were saying in the living room.

"Phoebe, you're definitely not okay with this," Coop blurted out and Phoebe scoffed.

"Of course I'm not Coop," she stated blatantly. "Not only is my dead sister back, but so is Cole. You know how that ended and how hard it was," she told him determined to keep her voice down so that Cole wouldn't hear her. She couldn't risk him finding out anything about their past. She just couldn't drag that back to the surface especially when he didn't have the memories or the capability to understand.

"I do Phoebe, but you have to talk to me," he prodded and Phoebe held her head in her hands.

"Coop, it _just_ happened," she reminded him, her eyes still on the floor too tired to bother looking at him. "I don't know how I feel about him being back," she admitted and Cole found himself desperate to know what had happened between himself and Phoebe in their past. Clearly it had been important and he couldn't help but wonder if they had been involved romantically. It could certainly explain Coop's attitude towards Cole since he had appeared.

"Phoebe," Coop pleaded and Cole nearly felt sorry for him. "Baby, I love you. I need you to know that," he said and Phoebe finally looked him in the eye.

"I love you too," she said softly. "I do," she assured him. "But it's been a long day. I'm going to help Piper in the kitchen," she said and Cole darted back into the conservatory as she passed through the dining room and into the kitchen. He casually entered the dining room acting as if he was just leaving the conservatory when he saw Coop hurrying after Phoebe like a love struck puppy. Cole rolled his eyes slightly before calling out to the man.

"You might want to give her some space," he offered with a friendly smile as Coop stopped dead in his tracks to stare at him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, his voice dripping with hatred. And damn if looks could kill Cole would be dead yet again. Coop's eyes darkened with anger as he waited for Cole to respond and Cole knew he had to tread lightly.

"You and Phoebe," Cole replied innocently. "It just looked like she needed some time to herself," he said with a casual shrug before Coop stomped over to him and got right in his face.

"Listen Cole, you might not know me, but I sure as _hell_ know _you_," he seethed, staring up at Cole since Coop was a few inches shorter. His teeth were clenched and he jabbed a finger into Cole's chest with his next statement. "You don't know a damn thing about Phoebe anymore," he insisted and Cole smirked slightly at Coop's obvious insecurity.

"I-"

"Stay the hell away from her," Coop threatened not even allowing Cole to finish his sentence. Coop's dark eyes flashed with fury, and Cole could see that Coop meant every word he was saying. He was clearly trying to protect Phoebe from Cole, but for the life of him Cole couldn't imagine what.

"I was just trying to be friendly," Cole said raising his hands in mock surrender. "Sorry," he said with an innocent smile as he slowly stepped back into the conservatory feeling a great deal of satisfaction for having gotten such a reaction out of Cooper with such little effort. Although Cole may not have memory of it, he clearly had a past with Phoebe. And for some reason, that fact gave him great pleasure.

"I'm going to go to Magic School and see if I can find anything on this mystical amnesia," Phoebe offered as she entered the kitchen feeling the need to get out of the house and put some distance between herself and Cole. And Coop for that matter. He had been following her like a puppy since the minute Cole had appeared. "I have to do something," Phoebe explained and Paige nodded.

"I'll go with you," she offered and Phoebe smiled grateful that no one was fighting her on this. "Let's go," Paige said quickly walking over to Phoebe before anyone could argue. They immediately orbed out and appeared in the Magic School library.

"Thanks Paige," Phoebe said with a grateful sigh.

"I figured you needed to get out of there," Paige replied and Phoebe nodded. "How are you?" Paige asked, her voice giving away all the concern she felt for her sister.

"I have no idea," Phoebe answered with a humorless smile before sinking onto a nearby couch. "I was thrilled to have Prue back," she told Paige honestly. "I can't even begin to tell you how much I still miss her," she whispered as she fought off a few tears as memories of the days following Prue's death came flooding back. "But then…"

"Cole," Paige finished and Phoebe nodded before resting her head against the back of the couch.

"And Coop," Phoebe added as Paige sat down next to her. "He's hovering."

"He's worried about you," Paige told her and Phoebe squeezed her eyes shut in annoyance and shook her head. "And Sweetie, so am I," Paige added reluctantly. "What you went through with Cole was…awful," Paige said softly as Phoebe turned her head so she was facing her sister. "I don't want you to have to go through that again and neither does Coop."

"I know," Phoebe conceded knowing that her sister was right. "And I don't want to go through that again either, but if Cole gets his memory back…" Phoebe trailed off and Paige sighed and pressed her lips together. "He was never known for moving on," she sighed. "And if nothing else I'm going to have to talk to him and relive all of it," she murmured and Paige wrapped her arms around Phoebe's shoulders in a comforting hug.

"I'm sorry Phoebs," Paige whispered as a few tears fell from Phoebe's eyes. "Want me to find a way to send Cole back and just keep Prue," she said and Phoebe laughed softly at Paige's offer.

"No," Phoebe replied as she pulled away and wiped her tears away. "Magic happens for a reason," she reminded her sister. "But I can't go back to Cole," she insisted and Paige nodded. "I won't."

"I know," she told her as she let her mind wander back to when she had first met Phoebe and Cole. "You didn't last time. And you have Coop now."

"Yeah," Phoebe agreed before they both fell silent. "Let's research," Phoebe finally said as she pulled away from the hug. "Before Coop shows up and wants to check on me."

"Well we only have the one extra room and it's Phoebe's," Piper pointed out and Leo nodded knowing that Paige's old room had been converted into a bedroom for Wyatt and Chris. "I don't really think we should have Cole sleeping in Phoebe's old bedroom."

"Definitely not," Leo agreed. "If it triggers memories or something from when it was his room too…" he trailed off knowing that Piper didn't need her to finish her thought for her to understand the implications of what she was saying.

"Prue can stay in Phoebe's room," Piper offered knowing that Phoebe wouldn't mind in the least if Prue slept there. "But what about Cole?"

"I'd say he could stay with Paige and Henry," Leo replied with a shrug. "But I don't know if it would be a good idea to take either Prue or Cole out of the manor," he stated and Piper nodded. "I think they both need to stay here by the nexus until we know they're safe. Although I'm still not sure they're the ones we need to be worried about getting hurt," Leo murmured as he glanced towards Cole whose eyes were glued to Coop.

"Do you really think they're…okay?" Piper asked for lack of a better word. "Before you said you thought they came back okay," she continued and Leo sighed.

"I said I thought they came back just as they were before," he corrected and Piper let out a defeated sigh. "But what does that really tell us about Cole? I mean, which Cole even came back?" Leo asked pointedly and Piper had to agree. "Even then, is it the good version or the bad version? We were never too clear on that," he reminded Piper who cracked a small humorless smile.

"Neither was he," she stated simply.

**Please just leave a quick review and let me know how it's going. we'll be getting back into some demonic attacks soon that will also help move along some relationships (including the ones between the four sisters)!**


	17. Chapter 17

**This chapter is mostly to set up the next one, but it is important! Let me know what you think. And thanks to everyone who's left a review so far. :)  
**

Ch. 17

Billie opened her laptop and settled against the couch, relieved that she didn't have a temp job that day. She relaxed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, her hair up in a messy ponytail as she read up on going back to finish college. She glanced around the room when she suddenly got the uneasy feeling that she wasn't alone in her apartment. Having learned to trust her instincts, she shut her laptop and set it aside waiting for whatever was about to happen.

Just a few moments later, a demon shimmered in and Billie sat up immediately. Subtly reaching for the dagger she kept under the coffee table, she never took her eyes off the demon, but was confused when it didn't make any move to attack. He appeared human in form, but even in human form his physicality was intimidating.

"What do you want?" she finally asked, her curiosity getting the better of her until four more demons shimmered in next to him. Billie fought the instinct to fight knowing that the odds were against her. She was powerful, but defeating five demons herself would be difficult if not impossible.

"Information," the demon replied curtly as he walked forward and Billie pulled the dagger into plain sight. Unable to maintain the peaceful conversation any longer, Billie telekinetically threw a potted plant at one of the four demons who had arrived later. It shattered against his head and to her relief he stumbled slightly. At least they weren't _that_ powerful. "If we wanted trouble we would have attacked by now," the first demon placated as he moved closer to Billie. "We just want to talk."

"Then talk," she ordered, in the back of her mind wondering if she should call for Paige. These demons didn't seem very strong, but if the five of them all attacked at once it would be a tough fight for just Billie.

"Is it true that the first Charmed One is back?" the first demon asked and Billie snorted in annoyance at such an absurd question.

"What are you talking about?" she asked feeling her arm holding the dagger relax slightly as these demons seemed to show they were in fact more interested in information than violence.

"The first born of the Charmed Ones," the demon clarified patiently. "Is it true that she has come back to life?" he asked and Billie shook her head in disbelief.

"No," she said as the demon nodded with a smile and began walking back towards the other four demons. As he began to signal that the group shimmer out, Billie threw her dagger at one of the lesser demons that clearly wasn't the leader. It impaled the demon in the chest, and he quickly exploded into flames. The first demon turned and glared at her in fury.

"You'll pay for that, Witch," he snarled before the remaining four demons shimmered out. With a sigh, Billie flopped back onto her couch wondering where such a ridiculous rumor had started in the demonic community. Prue back from the dead? Right…

"Why don't we just have Cole touch the Book of Shadows?" Paige asked gesturing towards its stand, but Piper shook her head.

"We don't want him to know he was…or is a demon," she reminded her youngest sister who sighed dramatically. "If he's evil and the book shocks him then-"

"At least we would know!" she exclaimed in annoyance and Piper was relieved that Phoebe and Coop hadn't yet come over that morning. Prue and Cole were still getting dressed for the day, Henry had taken another day off and was watching TV, and Leo, Piper, and Paige were involved in yet another brainstorming session in the attic.

"Maybe not," Leo said slowly as he walked over to the book. "There were times when Cole was Belthazor and still good. It would be possible for him to be a demon but not be evil," he pointed out and Paige rolled her eyes.

"Right," she scoffed and Piper let out a breath that she hadn't known she'd been holding.

"Don't say that around Phoebe, Paige," Piper warned as she turned to glare at Paige.

"Why not? It's the truth," she insisted but Piper shook her head vehemently.

"We don't know that. And whether you like it or not, Cole meant and still means a lot to Phoebe," Piper reminded her as she glanced quickly at Leo to see that he agreed with her. "And we all have enough to worry about without fighting with each other," she said sternly and Paige pressed her tongue to her teeth knowing that Piper was right. "We have a dead sister who's back, a dead demon brother in law who's back, demons banding together against us, and still no idea what to do about any of it!" she exclaimed her voice rising slightly as she slammed one of her hands down on the book. "So damn it we are NOT going to fight with each other," she finished before Paige stalked out of the attic without another word.

Paige hurried down the stairs from the attic, still annoyed at how controlling Piper could be. She shook her head, muttering under her breath, when she literally collided with Cole.

"Oops, sorry," he chuckled politely as he offered a warm smile. "Problems? Are demons after us?" he asked and Paige glared at him wondering how he could possibly tell what they had been talking about upstairs.

"Were you listening to us in the attic?" she accused and a confused expression took over his face.

"What? No," he replied as his brow furrowed and he shook his head.

"Then how do you know about the demons?" she questioned as her eyes narrowed and her voice took on a hard tone she had become accustomed to using with Cole.

"I was joking," he told her, but she didn't waver, not trusting him for a second. "You looked distracted…worried, and I didn't know what else it could be," he explained slowly and she stared at him, waiting for him to give himself up. When he didn't she finally blinked and looked away. "Do you want me to call Phoebe? Maybe she can-"

"NO!" Paige said a little too quickly. "I mean, I'll call her," she said, cursing herself for jumping to conclusions about Cole. "You just…try to get your memory back," she instructed before stepping around him and walking the rest of the way down the stairs. He watched her retreating form and rolled his eyes wondering if Paige had annoyed him this much before he'd died.

Billie stepped onto the sidewalk outside her apartment building knowing she had to tell the sisters what had happened at her apartment that morning. If the demons that had come to her thought Prue was alive, then clearly there were rumors circulating in the Underworld and it wouldn't be long before some of them attacked the sisters for information. Since Billie had the day off, she began walking in the direction of the manor planning to give the sisters a heads up.

She passed by an alley that was normally empty, but she had to do a double take when she noticed a young girl about Billie's age huddled against the side of the building. Billie glanced around and saw no one else there to help, so she hurried to the girl's side. The girl looked up as she sensed Billie approaching and quickly shied away.

"It's okay," Billie assured her as she squatted down to be on her level. She reached out to lay a comforting hand on her arm, but the girl stood quickly and backed away. "I just want to help," Billie promised and the girl looked cautiously over Billie's shoulder towards the street. "What's your name?"

"A-Ashlyne," the girl answered hesitantly and Billie slowly walked towards her.

"Okay Ashlyne," Billie said in a comforting tone as she saw the girl beginning to warm up to her. "What's going on? Are you okay?"

"No," she whispered as she again walked so her back was pressed against the building. "Something's after me," she murmured with tears in her eyes.

"What kind of something?" Billie asked as Ashlyne shook her head in fear.

"I-I don't know. It wasn't normal," she whispered and Billie nodded knowing that Ashlyne was totally out of her element. "I was on my way to work, and it was following me, and I know this sounds so crazy," she moaned as she leaned her head back against the building. "But I swear-"

"No, I believe you. Trust me," Billie assured her. "I've dealt with this kind of thing before. Just, come back to my apartment. You'll be safe there and we'll figure this out. I promise," she said and Ashlyne eyed her for a moment before nodding slightly and following Billie the few blocks back to her apartment. When they stepped inside and Billie locked the door, Billie turned to Ashlyne and saw her a little calmer than she had been in the alley.

"What the hell is happening to me?" she finally asked and Billie sighed before leading her to the couch.

"That's what we're going to figure out. What was chasing you? What did it look like?" she asked and Ashlyne shook her head.

"It looked like a normal guy and he was cute," she explained and Billie sat on the coffee table in front of her. "We were in the coffee shop talking and flirting, and when he walked me to my car…he kept locking the doors l-like with h-his _mind_ or something," she sputtered. "I couldn't get in my car. So I finally just tried to run away, but he was faster than me. Eventually I rushed into a nail salon that was really crowded and he didn't follow me, but when I went out a little while later I saw him across the street and I hid in that alley," she said, speeding up with every word. "I had been there for almost an hour when you found me. I was too afraid to move in case he was still there and saw me," she admitted and Billie nodded.

"It sounds like it was a demon of some kind," Billie told her in the kindest voice she could manage.

"A, a demon?" Ashlyne asked with a raised eyebrow. "I don't think-"

"Trust me," Billie said firmly. "I know because I'm, well," she paused wondering how the Halliwells had gotten so good at this. "I'm a witch," she finally said and Ashlyne's eyes widened. "Watch," Billie instructed as she waved her hand and moved the remote until it was on Ashlyne's lap. "I can do some other stuff, but that's the general idea," she said looking up to see Ashlyne's face wide in shock.

"Okay…" she trailed off as she gingerly set the remote back on the couch beside her. "So what do I do about this…demon," she asked and Billie sighed.

"Well, we find him and we vanquish him," Billie said confidently. "I have some potions already made that should work and I can write a spell as a plan B and we should have this done within the hour!" she said cheerfully but Ashlyne remained skeptical. Billie stood and hurried to the other room to grab a few vials of potions she always kept on hand. With a notepad and pencil she sat next to Ashlyne and wrote a quick spell before tearing off the page and standing up.

"Now?" Ashlyne asked and Billie nodded. "What do we do?"

"We go back to that alley where he last saw you. I hide, wait for him to show, and then vanquish him," she explained and Ashlyne took a deep breath. "Ready?"

"No, but let's do it," Ashlyne agreed before following Billie out the door. They walked in silence back to the alley where they'd first met. "So now what? You hide?" she double checked and Billie nodded.

"I'll be right there," she pointed behind a crate. "And he'll show up in a couple minutes. He was afraid to risk exposure before, but now nobody's seen him for a while. He'll probably shimmer in right next to you," she explained and Ashlyne nodded trying to maintain her brave face. "And then I'll vanquish him. You take this and throw it at him if he gets too close," she said handing her a vial of potion before rushing off and hiding behind the crate.

No sooner was she hidden from view than a demon shimmered in right in front of Ashlyne. Billie saw her take a shaky breath and instinctively back away. Billie silently crept from behind the crate until she was closer.

"Ashlyne," the demon sneered as his lips curled into a cruel smile. "Why ever did you run?" he asked before stepping closer to her. Billie could see that Ashlyne was frozen in fear so she walked even closer to the demon.

"Hey, demon guy!" she called trying to draw his attention away from the innocent. "What? You can't get a girl to go out with you without using your powers?" she taunted and the demon lunged at her but she waved her hand and flung him against a wall.

"Witch!" the demon roared angrily as Billie grabbed her potion and threw it at him. It collided with his chest and he dissolved into smoke. When all that remained was a pile of ash, Billie turned to Ashlyne who had tears running down her face.

"Is he gone?" she asked in a quiet voice afraid to step closer to where the demon had been.

"Yeah. He's gone," Billie confirmed as she walked over to Ashlyne. "You're safe now," Billie assured her. "Want me to walk you to your car?" she asked and Ashlyne shook her head.

"No," she replied as she wiped her tears away. "I'm okay. Thank you," she said shaking her head. "I don't know what to say."

"Just, keep the secret. If people find out about the witch thing-"

"Trust me, I won't be telling anyone about this," Ashlyne assured her and Billie smiled as Ashlyne hugged her. "Thank you," she said before turning and walking away. When she was out of sight Billie sighed and began to head out of the alley.

"Witch," she heard from behind her and she whirled around to see the demon she had just vanquished standing unharmed in the alley, the ashes from his vanquish nowhere to be seen. At her surprised look he laughed and walked closer. "You think your potions can vanquish me?" he asked as he summoned an energy ball and threw it at Billie. Instinctively Billie redirected it towards the demon who dodged it at the last minute. "They said you'd be powerful," he commented and Billie cocked her head to the side.

"Well at least they got that right," she said before reaching into her boot and pulling out an athame. Without a moment's hesitation she threw it at the demon who simply caught it by the handle. It was then that she noticed the mark on the inside of his wrist. It was a dragon of some sort with two heads, but before Billie could get a closer look he had shimmered away. Standing on alert, Billie waited, but was still surprised when he shimmered in directly behind her. Grabbing both of her wrists, he forced them behind her back and magically tied them with a string he had just conjured.

"You think I really wanted that girl?" he whispered, leaning so his voice was next to her ear. "I just needed her to get to you," he chuckled before shimmering out of the alley with a defenseless Billie in his arms.

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"Hi," Phoebe breathed out as she walked into the living room to find Piper and Prue sitting on the couch.

"Phoebe," Piper said surprised that she had come to the house when Cole was around. "What are you doing here? You didn't need-"

"I wanted to see my sister," Phoebe replied and Piper nodded knowing that no matter how difficult it was for Phoebe to see Cole, nothing would stop her from seeing Prue. Without another word Phoebe sat next to Piper and Prue so that all three of them were together on the couch. "This is how it's supposed to be," she whispered and Piper wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"And this is how it will be," Piper agreed as Prue smiled at her two sisters. "We grew up together, we fought together, and now we'll live our lives together," Piper whispered as tears stung her eyes. She wrapped her other arm around Prue's shoulders so she was holding both of her sisters and they settled back into the couch. Phoebe rested her head against Piper's shoulder and sighed, her mind traveling back to years ago when it had been just the three of them against the world.

"I wish I could remember," Prue said wistfully and Piper shook her head.

"We'll get your memory back," she said confidently. "You may not remember, but we've been through way worse together," she told her which made Prue curious.

"Like what?" she asked and Piper hesitated.

"I don't know if now's the time for you to hear about those things," she admitted and Prue glared at her in a way that only Prue could. A small smile crept onto Piper's face at Prue's stubbornness.

"I want to know. So talk," Prue ordered and Piper wracked her brain for stories that weren't too horrifying for Prue since she was still adjusting.

"Well we had to fight off my warlock fiancé on the day we first found out we were witches," Piper recalled and Phoebe laughed at the look of shock on Prue's face.

"You were engaged to a warlock?" Prue exclaimed and Piper grew defensive.

"Well you got married to one and turned all of us evil!" Piper retorted and Phoebe laughed hysterically as Prue gasped in horror.

"Don't worry Prue. We killed him," Phoebe assured her oldest sister who shook her head in disbelief. "But remember when Prue became a man?" Phoebe asked and Prue scoffed and Piper laughed out loud. "Or when she was a dog? Is that all Prue ever turned into?" Phoebe asked suddenly switching gears. "That hardly seems fair," she muttered. "I had to be a genie, a mermaid, a banshee, evil in a past life, queen of the Underworld, and pregnant with the Source of all evil. How about you Piper?" she asked in a casual tone as she enjoyed the look on Prue's face as they discussed this so nonchalantly.

"A wendigo, fury, valkyrie, possessed by who knows how many things, a Hindu spirit with six arms…" Piper trailed off wondering if she was leaving anything out. "Oooh, me, you, and Paige all became goddesses that one time, remember?" she asked and Phoebe nodded.

"And we're supposedly the best witches of all time?" Prue asked skeptically and Phoebe and Piper nodded seriously. "Right…"

"No, we are. That stuff only happens like once every couple of months," Piper said waving her hand in a dismissive motion. "Really it's not that big of a deal. And we almost always come back from it without dying first," she assured her sister who shook her head.

"I really hope you're exaggerating," she groaned before leaning back against the couch. The three of them fell into silence, contemplating everything that had just been said. After another deep breath Prue couldn't get past the one thing that was bothering her. "Let's go back to the part where I was a man."


	18. Chapter 18

**Sorry for the long wait, but here's a pretty long chapter to make up for it. The next chapter's almost done as well because it was supposed to be included in this chapter, but it ended up being way too long. So it shouldn't be very long for the next one. Let me know what you guys think. The next chapter is my favorite so far!  
**

Ch. 18

Billie was shimmered into a dark cavern that she didn't recognize. It didn't look to be the Underworld, but she wasn't sure it was above ground either. The lighting was too dim for Billie to be able to make out all of her surroundings, but only seconds after Billie and the demon arrived, many more demons shimmered into the cavern.

"You have the witch?" one of them asked and the demon holding Billie let out a cocky laugh.

"I told you I would," he replied yanking Billie towards a steel cage. "She barely put up a fight," he bragged before pulling Billie towards the cage. "In here you won't be able to get out," he whispered into her ear. Even as Billie tried to use her powers she could tell that something was blocking her magic, most likely the magical rope around her wrists. "You can't call for your whitelighter. You can't project yourself out or change the cage. And to make it all the more fun for us, you'll be chained up," he smirked as he yanked Billie towards the back of the cage where he pulled her arms above her head. He attached manacles to her wrists before stepping away to admire his work. "Perfect," he muttered before backing out of the cage and locking it behind him.

"Is it done?" another demon asked and the one who had captured and chained Billie turned in the direction of the sound.

"It's done," he replied and as the new demon emerged from the shadows Billie saw that he was taller and clearly her captor's superior. "She's in the cage and all of her magic is blocked. Her whitelighter won't hear her calls. She's all yours," he promised before bowing and leaving Billie at the hands of his master.

"What do you want?" Billie asked hoping that if she could get them talking she could come up with an escape plan. She had been trying to use her magic to project herself out of the cage, to a different point in time, or to change her chains or cage into something else, but it was futile. The cavern had been protected somehow against her magic. She subtly flicked her fingers trying to move one of the demons telekinetically, but that power too was useless.

"Well, you of course," the demon answered as he stepped closer to the cage. For the first time Billie was able to get a good look at him. Knowing that every detail that she could find was important, she studied him closely. He too appeared human with dark brown hair and striking green eyes, but the feature that drew Billie's attention was the marking visible on his chest above the neckline of his shirt. It was a dragon with two heads, just like the one she had seen on her captor's wrist, but much larger.

"You're destined for greatness," he explained, the disgust evident in his voice. "We can't let that happen," he stated simply. "Not until we're sure of what's going on."

"The sisters will know I'm missing," Billie blurted out knowing that she didn't need to identify who the sisters were. Every demon knew who the Charmed Ones were and knew that Billie was close to them. The fact that they had kidnapped Billie was likely a strategic move to get to them or get something from them, but Billie was desperate to get this demon talking.

"The_ sisters_ are very busy dealing with…_sister_ business," he replied cryptically with a sly grin before stepping back slightly. "But don't worry. Once we have the rest of your power we won't need you anymore. This will be over soon," he assured her before shimmering out of the cavern leaving her to be guarded by three demons.

Billie squeezed her eyes shut in frustration and an unfamiliar feeling of fear. She wasn't used to situations that she didn't have any control over, but at the moment she couldn't seem to do anything to help herself.

"Paige," Billie whispered hoping that the demon guards couldn't hear her. "Paige," Billie tried again even though she knew that somehow her calls were being blocked. With a sigh she rested her head wearily against one of the bars of her cage trying to come up with a plan to get herself out of this mess.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Are you okay?" Prue asked cautiously as she came to stand next to Coop who she had noticed was staring at Phoebe from across the room. Coop was sitting at the kitchen table, and Phoebe had been ignoring him for the better part of an hour as she purposely engaged in conversations with Leo, Piper, or anyone that wasn't Coop.

"I've had better days," Coop admitted with a sigh as he turned to face Prue.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she offered and Coop gave her a small smile as she sat down across from him at the table. "I don't know how much advice I can give, but I can listen."

"Thanks," he replied genuinely and she gave him a soft smile in return. He remained silent for a few moments before leaning over the table to talk to her. "Phoebe and Cole used to…they were married," he whispered and Prue's eyes widened in shock as Coop's words registered. "There was a lot of magic involved that we shouldn't get into," he explained and Prue nodded having already figured out that there was a lot of back story that she wasn't getting in regards to Cole. "But Phoebe never got over it. She just got past it after he died."

"Wow," Prue breathed out taking in this new information. She glanced up at Phoebe and saw that she had no idea what Prue and Coop were discussing. "Do you think she still loves him?" she asked and Coop had to fight the urge to explain every detail of the Cole and Phoebe romance.

"I don't know," he admitted sadly. "I think a part of her always will. Things ended...badly," he stated for lack of a better word. Feeling like that didn't describe it properly, he searched his vocabulary for something more appropriate and finally settled on something more fitting. "Tragically actually," he corrected and Prue looked at him sympathetically. "But I do know that he still loves her. When his memory comes back, he'll want Phoebe," he said grimly and Prue looked at him seriously. "He'll do everything he can to win her back."

"Do you really think so? Even though she's happy with you?" she asked pointedly and Coop shook his head.

"You don't know Cole," he argued as his tongue came out to wet his bottom lip. "When it comes to Phoebe, Cole is ruthless."

Billie tugged for what must have been the hundredth time on her restraints, but they wouldn't budge. She groaned audibly, not caring if her guards heard her. What did it matter if they knew she was unhappy that she'd been captured? She had lost track of how many hours she had been there and she was uncomfortable. She wanted to sit down, but the chains were holding her arms too high to allow her body to do that. She was completely helpless. She couldn't use magic, she couldn't call for help, and she couldn't even sit down. She felt tears sting her eyes as she finally allowed herself the realization that she might not make it out of this one.

As that thought began to sink in, the demons from before reentered the cavern. The demon that had the two headed dragon mark on his chest led the group and he stood before Billie. With an evil smile he stared at her and she felt all of her tears dry up. This was a battle, and no matter what she promised herself she would go down fighting.

Without a word, the marked demon had one of his minions open the cage and release Billie from her restraints. When Billie felt her hands free she immediately went on the offensive. She flung her hands out to the sides and the demons holding her back flew to opposite sides of the cavern. She raised her hand to continue the fight, but the magical rope that had tied her hands together in the alley as she was captured was suddenly once again around her wrists, this time tighter and with more knots.

"You didn't think we forgot about your powers, now did you?" the marked demon, who was clearly the leader, asked. Without waiting for an answer he magically directed her to the other corner of the cavern. She was being held in place by some invisible force gripping her entire body in an unbearable pressure. She could feel the air leaving her body and she gasped for breath while instinctively trying to free her hands. One of the lesser demons chained her to this wall and reemerged with what appeared to be weapons of some kind. "You're going to tell us what we want to know," the demon insisted as he picked up a long knife. "One way…or the other," he said with a sardonic grin.

"I'm not in the mood for pizza tonight Henry," Paige said as she strolled through the conservatory. "I'd rather-AHHH!" Paige exclaimed suddenly before doubling over in an excruciating pain, the likes of which she'd never felt before. She clutched her right side before crying out again and falling to her knees.

"Paige, what's wrong?" Henry asked alarmed as Leo rushed to her side followed closely by Piper, Coop, and Phoebe.

"It's, ooooh!" she yelled, unable to explain before a blinding pain took over her stomach.

"A charge?" Leo asked knowingly and Paige managed a nod through the pain. "Can you tell who?" he asked and Paige managed another brief nod.

"Billie," she gasped and by now Cole and Prue had entered the room looking confused and terrified at the sight in front of them. Paige was in dire physical pain, but they could see no source causing this pain and they were left to assume it was another magical situation they weren't yet able to understand.

"Where is she?" Phoebe questioned and Piper felt her breath catch in her throat as she realized how quickly their lives had fallen back into their old pattern. Not only were they using magic again, but they were fighting for their lives and the lives of their loved ones on a daily basis.

"I-I can't tell," Paige whimpered before the pain ceased as suddenly as it had started. "T-the pain's gone," she said sitting up in alarm. "And I can't sense her. Does that mean-"

"She could be unconscious," Leo offered and Paige squeezed her eyes shut in concern. "If she's in trouble she probably called for you. If you didn't hear her, it must mean that you're blocked somehow and that's why you can't sense her," Leo explained and Paige relaxed but only slightly knowing that Billie was in real danger.

"Then why can she feel her pain?" Piper asked and Leo looked from her to Paige helplessly.

"I don't know," he admitted shaking his head. "But we need to find her. Fast," he added with a look to Piper that told her Billie didn't have much time.

"Book?" Piper asked and Paige nodded as she took Henry's offered hand as he helped her to stand. "Someone should stay down here with Prue and Cole," Piper said still trying to keep Cole away from the book. She glanced around the group wondering who should stay away from the action. It couldn't be Paige since she was clearly the one with the link, and if they needed to make a potion Piper would be able to do it the fastest. Henry wouldn't leave Paige's side after watching her suffer and they would need Leo's expertise in finding a charge. That just left…

"I'll stay," Phoebe offered as if reading Piper's mind. "Go. Find Billie," she assured Piper with a nod slightly relieved that she didn't have to go check the book. She was worn out from the events of the past few days and more research was the last thing she wanted to do. She scolded herself for such a selfish notion when her friend was obviously in trouble, but she knew that Paige and Piper had the situation under control so she turned to Coop. "Help them," she said gesturing to her sisters disappearing up the stairs to the attic.

"What?" he asked in a shocked tone, clearly surprised that she wanted him to leave her alone with Cole. "Phoebe-"

"Coop, you helped with enhancing my ability to love. If that helps Paige find Billie then you need to do that," Phoebe pointed out even though she knew it was mostly an excuse to get him out of her hair for a few minutes. She needed some time to process everything happening, and with him hovering all the time it was nearly impossible. "I'll be fine," she assured him and Coop knew that to argue in front of Cole and Prue would only cause a scene. Instead he leaned in and placed a quick kiss on Phoebe's lips before retreating to the attic.

"So, who's Billie?" Prue finally asked and Phoebe sighed as they walked into the foyer of the manor having felt too cramped being in the same room where Paige had just collapsed. Phoebe considered bringing them towards the couch, but chose to answer the question first.

"She's one of Paige's charges, but she's a young witch we've helped learn the craft," she replied and Prue and Cole both nodded.

"Cool," Cole said with a smirk that Phoebe found unfamiliar. It was innocent and unassuming with no ulterior motive behind it. He truly thought it was 'cool' that they taught Billie witchcraft. Phoebe sighed inwardly at Cole's naivety towards what he was…once was…is?

"Is she going to be okay?" Prue questioned and Phoebe opened her mouth to assure her sister that Billie would be fine, but before she could answer, she spotted two demons shimmer in behind them.

"Prue!" Phoebe exclaimed as she literally shoved Prue out of the way. Her sister's body slammed into the wall, but Phoebe paid her no mind knowing that she was safer against the wall than in the midst of an attack. She briefly wished Cole was able to fight, but knew it was up to her to protect the three of them until Piper and Paige got there.

"Phoebe, look out!" Prue warned and Phoebe ducked seeing an energy ball being hurled at her head. It sailed a few inches over her head leaving a scorch mark on the wall, and Phoebe rushed towards one of the demons. She let out a sharp kick that connected with his muscled chest, and he fell backwards into the newly repaired grandfather clock.

"PHOEBE!" she heard Cole cry out from behind her as he dove towards her and shoved her out of the way of the second demon that was headed for her. She silently cursed Piper and Paige for taking so long to come back her up. Couldn't Paige orb? What the hell was taking so long?

Phoebe glanced back towards Cole to see him being thrown across the foyer and into the wall between the stairs and the dining room until he collapsed. He seemed to be unconscious and Prue rushed over to him. While Prue checked to see if Cole was breathing, Phoebe punched the second demon square in the jaw and kicked him violently. She glanced back towards Prue who nodded that Cole was okay, just unconscious. Phoebe turned her attention back to the demons and Prue hurried up the stairs to the attic for help.

Phoebe felt the two demons come at her from either side and she cursed herself for having her levitation power taken away. She really needed to look into how to get that back…

Instead she ducked and kicked the one on the right's feet out from under him until he fell into a heap on the floor. The demon from her left side wasted no time in wrapping one arm around her neck and another quickly immobilized her arms. Phoebe struggled to get free, but the demon had some supernatural strength that she couldn't fight through. She kicked backwards but there was such little distance between her and the demon holding her it didn't carry much force, and the demon only chuckled in response.

"Caim, I think we've got her," he said from behind Phoebe and the demon in front of her rose to his feet and grinned wickedly.

"Who knew taking out a Charmed One would be this easy?" he asked forming an energy ball in his hand. Phoebe's eyes grew wide as she tried to twist her body out of the demon's grasp, but it was no use. She wondered if this was really how it was going to end…an energy ball while she was trapped in the arms of another demon? She always thought she'd go down in a glorious shower of fire or…something, but this…this was just anticlimactic.

"It's not," Phoebe retorted, doing anything to buy herself some time until Paige and Piper got down there. She had never fought a demon with as much physical strength as the one holding her. She literally could not move, and the force from his arms was making her body ache.

"It really seems like it is," Caim chuckled as he tossed the energy ball in the air before catching it in his hand. "And to think," he paused as his eyes met Phoebe's. "There's four of you and I'm still going to kill you," he pointed out smugly and Phoebe struggled even harder to get out from the demon's grasp. So the Underworld knew Prue was back… Caim only grinned at the surprised look she tried but failed to hide before he raised his hand to throw the energy ball. "Say goodbye, Witch," he snarled and prepared to release the energy ball.

"NOOOO!" Phoebe heard the desperate cry from behind Caim before an energy ball suddenly hit Caim in the back and he exploded in flames. The demon holding Phoebe shimmered out at the unexpected attack and Phoebe glanced around in shock. She gasped out loud when she looked to where Cole had been lying against the wall. She saw the black and red skin first, and then the second energy ball he had waiting that he let fizzle out in his hand. He was breathing rapidly, his muscular chest expanding with each breath, and as his eyes met Phoebe's, she felt as if she'd traveled back in time.

"Cole?" she whispered taking a slight step towards him but stopped unsure of what to do. "You're Belthazor?" she asked and he didn't respond, only rested his head against the wall where he was still sitting on the floor. Phoebe heard frantic footsteps on the stairs that halted suddenly at the sight in the foyer.

"Demon!" Henry called out pointing wondering why Piper, Paige, Leo, and Coop had all stopped in their tracks. Prue hung back, afraid to get caught in another battle, but took a tentative step forward when she saw that nobody was fighting.

"Belthazor," Piper stated in disbelief as Piper, Paige, Leo, Coop, Henry, and Prue each came to stand on a separate stair, their eyes darting between Phoebe and the sight in front of them.

"You _know_ this demon?" Henry asked in a shocked tone. "Aren't you going to vanquish him?" he wondered but his question was answered when Belthazor silently transformed back into Cole. "That's COLE?" Henry exploded, his mouth open in shock as he glanced at Phoebe who had yet to take her eyes off Cole. He knew Cole had been a demon, but knowing and seeing were two different things. "Phoebe's husband? Is he…was he evil?" he asked and Prue was relieved she didn't have to ask the question.

"Yes," Paige answered but was drowned out by Phoebe's, "NO." They two sisters looked at each other and Paige could tell that Phoebe was reeling from everything that had happened.

"We were never really sure," Piper admitted slowly and Prue took a deep breath to calm down. She'd been spending the last two days with a demon. Who her sister used to be married to. Perfect.

Phoebe stared at Cole wondering what had happened during the fight that made him tap into his demonic half that he hadn't even known existed. He'd saved her. Twice. Was that it? Had that made him tap into his powers? Their eyes met and she saw only pain and regret in his. The intensity in his gaze took her off guard.

"I'm so sorry, Phoebe," he whispered and his voice cracked slightly before he silently shimmered out of the manor answering the question that they had all been wondering. He had gotten his memory back.


	19. Chapter 19

**I'm SO sorry it took so long to update. I'm actually on vacation at the moment, so I haven't had much time to write. This is a pretty long chapter though so hopefully it makes up for the wait. I'll be home late next week so then I can probably get back to my regular writing/update schedule. Let me know what you think. Maybe if I get a lot of reviews/suggestions/comments I'll be inspired to write even before I get home!  
**

Ch. 19

"Where did he go?" Leo asked and Phoebe avoided eye contact with everyone on the stairs. "We have to stop him."

"We don't know that he's evil, Leo," Phoebe spat out and Paige scoffed, but fell silent when Phoebe glared at her. "We don't," she said firmly.

"We still need to find him," Leo insisted. "People think he's dead. If they see him alive it could expose you," he told them and Piper sighed wishing that Phoebe didn't have to deal with that on top of everything else she must be feeling at that moment.

"He won't let anyone see him," Phoebe assured them. "He's smarter than that," she pointed out and the rest of them had to agree. Good or evil, Cole had always been smart.

"Why were you two fighting?" Paige asked and Phoebe finally realized what they thought had happened. Prue had said a demon attacked, and when they got downstairs and saw Belthazor they assumed that he was the demon Prue had been talking about.

"We weren't," Phoebe told them glancing at Prue for some help. "There were two other demons," she said and Prue nodded to the group in confirmation. "I was fighting them. Cole saved me," she said, her voice dropping as she recounted the event. "Twice," she added as her eyes met Piper's. "Once just as Cole. He shoved me out of the way and ended up getting attacked because of it," she explained still shaken from the fight. "But then one of the demons had me and the other was about to throw an energy ball at me and Belthazor threw an energy ball and vanquished him."

"And the other demon?" Piper asked and Phoebe shook her head.

"He shimmered out when Belthazor appeared," she told them and Paige nodded. No demon wanted to face Belthazor regardless of how many times he had died so far.

"Do you think Cole has his memory back?" Paige asked and Phoebe looked at her seriously.

"I know he does," she confirmed without hesitation. "As soon as he used his powers I could see it in his eyes," she told them and Leo nodded.

"It makes sense. The powers were dormant, and when they became active again so did the memories," he said and Prue felt a wave of panic rush through her at the realization that she was going to be getting her powers back along with her memories. And from what she had seen so far, powers meant fighting demons. She could only hope she was as powerful as her sisters kept telling her she was.

"We still need to find him," Piper said with an apologetic glance towards Phoebe who nodded acknowledging that Piper was right.

"How? He could be anywhere. In any dimension!" Paige pointed out but Phoebe shook her head.

"I have a pretty good idea where he is," she admitted and Coop looked at her in confusion. How could she possibly know? He was about to ask this when Piper nodded accepting that Phoebe instinctively knew where Cole would go.

"Okay," she said as Phoebe went to grab the car keys. When Piper and Paige made no move to go with her, Coop nearly exploded and rushed down the stairs until he was next to Phoebe.

"You can't go after him alone!" he exclaimed and Phoebe sighed softly and placed a comforting hand on Coop's forearm.

"I'll be fine," she promised but he shook his head.

"You should at least have the Power of Three," he insisted but this time Paige spoke up.

"It doesn't matter. We can't vanquish Belthazor without a potion and for that we need his flesh," she said and she could see Coop cringe at the thought.

"You probably should take an athame, Phoebe," Piper said calmly knowing that although Phoebe had no intention of vanquishing Cole, she should still have a weapon just in case. "Just to be safe," she added and when Phoebe looked at her she saw that Piper understood where she was coming from.

"Okay," she relented knowing that Piper was right and that it would help Coop relax.

"I'm going with you," Coop said suddenly as he began to pull her towards the door, but Phoebe shook her head.

"No way," she said and Coop looked at her dumbfounded that she had refused him outright in front of their whole family. "I have to do this alone, Coop," she said more gently.

"She should go alone," Piper agreed and Coop looked at her desperately.

"You just said you didn't know if this guy was evil, and you're sending her in there to meet him alone!" he exploded throwing his arms out to the sides. "He has his memory back now. He could be playing you. It's probably a trap," he said exasperated but Phoebe sighed. She put her head in her hands wanting nothing more than to get out of that house.

"It's not a trap," Phoebe replied. "He's had his memory back for five minutes," she pointed out, but Coop wasn't so easily convinced.

"You all just said you never knew if he was evil!" he repeated and this time Piper stepped into the conversation.

"We didn't," she agreed and Coop looked at her in desperate confusion. "But we did know he would never hurt Phoebe," she explained and Coop felt all of his ammunition for the argument disappear. Everyone was united against him. They were willing to let Phoebe go meet Belthazor, in an unknown location, by herself, and didn't even seem concerned. "You on the other hand…" she trailed off leaving her thought unfinished although everyone knew she was saying that if Cole was evil he would have no qualms about hurting Coop.

"Actually he might hurt you if he's not evil," Paige pointed out and Leo had to hold back a laugh at the sheer truth of that statement. Even without his memory Cole didn't like Coop, and now that he had his memory of Phoebe back…they should keep those two apart.

"I can't take the chance that he'd hurt you," Phoebe told Coop with an apologetic glance before turning to her sisters. "Or any of you," she added sadly. "I have to go alone," she insisted and Paige and Piper nodded their understanding. She turned to Coop to see him step aside, still furious. She ignored his anger knowing that she was doing the right thing and headed out the door.

"What do we do now?" Paige asked and Piper sighed and tore her eyes away from Coop who was still fuming.

"We find Billie," she said and they all headed back up the stairs to the attic.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Phoebe walked through the all too familiar cemetery before coming to a stop in front of the mausoleum. She never thought she'd be back here. She really thought she had moved on. Taking a deep breath, she headed in and as she got all the way inside she spotted Cole. He was leaning against the far wall, arms crossed over his chest impatiently.

Neither of them moved and they stood in silence, each of them trapped in their thoughts. It could easily have been six years ago, the two of them meeting alone for a forbidden rendezvous in the mausoleum. But it wasn't, and a lot of things had changed. A lot had been done and a lot had been said that couldn't be taken back.

"I thought you'd be here sooner," he finally stated, his simple words betraying the underlying emotions of the situation.

"If you wanted to be alone this really wasn't the best place to come," Phoebe pointed out and Cole let out a humorless laugh.

"I didn't want to be alone," he responded as shook his head. "I just didn't want to have this conversation around your sisters. Or Coop," he added with disgust and Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Seriously Phoebe, a cupid?" he questioned not bothering to hide his feelings.

"What? You don't think he's good enough for me?" she spat out having already expected this reaction from him. Cole walked slowly away from the wall and took small steps in her direction.

"No," he refuted her statement and she was slightly surprised. She had thought for sure Cole would be jealous of Coop. "I think he's too good for you," he whispered shocking her thoroughly. "You need a little evil in your man, Phoebe," he murmured quietly as he gradually moved closer to her. "A little demon so that you feel alive," he continued as his shoulders hunched down slightly so he was closer to her height. "Admit it, Phoebe," he husked out and he was now only a few feet from her. "Things were never the same after I became human."

"I don't need my man to be evil," she argued purposely avoiding his last statement knowing it was the truth. "And he certainly doesn't need to be a demon," she said, but Cole only chuckled in response and stepped closer to her.

"Yes you do, Phoebe," he disagreed and Phoebe backed up as he moved closer. "You always did. You never loved anybody the way you loved me," he insisted but she shook her head denying his statement. "You don't have to admit it," he assured her in a deceivingly calm voice. "I've seen it. I've watched you," he told her. "I know you, Phoebe," he pointed out, his eyes boring into hers and she felt her back hit the wall behind her. He was only a foot away from her now and she had nowhere else to go. "I know what you need to be…satisfied," he whispered, his eyes flicking down her body before coming back up to meet hers.

"Cole, stop it," she warned, but the smug smile on his face never wavered. He was still stepping towards her and he was now only inches from her face.

"You need that evil streak in your man Phoebe," he murmured as he rested his palms against the wall on either side of her head effectively trapping her. She felt her breath catch in her throat and her heart nearly pounding out of her chest as his body was only millimeters from hers. "You need your man to toe the line because you're afraid you'll go over it," he said, his voice still husky and Phoebe's eyes met his. "You always worry you're not good enough for Coop," he stated nonchalantly as he leaned his body even closer to hers. His eyes traveled over her body carelessly, not bothering to hide his intentions. "Don't you?" he asked, finally meeting her gaze and her eyes hardened in anger.

"Cole, let me go," she demanded but he ignored her statement and only waited for her response. When none came he prompted her again.

"Answer the question, Phoebe," he whispered and she shook her head.

"Let me go, now Cole," she hissed, angry that he could read her like a book. He still knew her better than she knew herself.

"Come on, Phoebe," he scolded bending his elbows so he was leaning closer to her. "We both know what you're physically capable of. If you really wanted to get away, you could," he smirked and she hated him for the fact that he was right. With a few kicks and punches she'd be out of his grasp in seconds and he would let her. He just wanted to see what she would do. She didn't move a muscle and he nodded his head. "That's what I thought," he murmured so close that she could feel his breath on her lips. "Now hand me the athame," he said gesturing towards her purse before stepping away from her.

"What?" she asked her eyes widening in surprise. How could he know she had an athame?

"You'd never come here alone and unarmed. Your sisters wouldn't let you," he pointed out and she sighed knowing he was right. "I can't see it anywhere on you so I assume it's in your bag?" he asked and she silently pulled it out, but hesitated to hand it to him. "Come on Phoebe, I'm not going to hurt you," he said as if the thought was absurd.

With another sigh she handed it over and he took it in his right hand before transforming into Belthazor. "When I let you guys do this last time it hurt like hell," he grimaced as he cut off a small piece of flesh from his left forearm. "Here," he said picking up the flesh and holding it out to her along with the athame before turning back into Cole. "I figured Paige wouldn't be as forthcoming with the healing as Leo was," he mused and Phoebe ignored him surprised that she had forgotten how deeply he could cut with his words.

Phoebe scrunched up her nose and gingerly grabbed the flesh, still surprised that he'd given it to her so willingly. She put the athame back in her purse and hesitated before putting the flesh in a side pocket of her purse. She was convinced that Cole wasn't evil. She didn't know where was going to go, but she knew he would be able to take care of himself. Their eyes met and after a moment Phoebe broke the stare and turned to leave without another word.

"Phoebe," Cole called and she turned reluctantly. "I'm glad you get to have Prue back," he said truthfully as he remembered how much it had hurt for her to lose her big sister. "I'm just sorry you have to deal with me too," he said sincerely and Phoebe let a small smile cross her face for just a second.

"I'd deal with you a thousand times over if I meant I got to have Prue back for even one more day," she told him honestly and he nodded in understanding before Phoebe turned and left the mausoleum. When he was sure she was gone he let out a deep sigh and shimmered off.

"Any news on Billie?" Phoebe asked as she stepped into the attic after returning from the mausoleum. Paige and Piper looked up from the book with questioning glances and Phoebe sighed knowing that she wasn't going to be able to put off the conversation about Cole. At that moment Leo walked into the attic after having checked on the boys, and when he saw Phoebe he too immediately had questions.

"Well?" Paige asked impatiently and Phoebe sighed before sitting on the couch.

"He's not evil," she stated. "But he's…still Cole," she muttered and Piper looked at her knowingly. "He did give me this," she told them as she reached into her purse and pulled out the piece of Belthazor flesh. "Willingly and without prompting," she added and Paige rolled her eyes.

"Of course he did," she mused, her annoyance clear in her tone. "So now we have to feel guilty if we vanquish him," she sighed and the glare that Piper sent her way did not go unnoticed by Phoebe.

"We can't vanquish him if he isn't evil," Leo pointed out and Phoebe was grateful to not have to be the one to say the words. They would have sounded petty and love struck coming from her, but Leo was the wise ex-whitelighter. They had to listen to him.

"Leo's right," Piper agreed and Phoebe smiled slightly, relieved that Paige was outnumbered. "But we should keep this, just in case," she said reaching for the flesh and leaving the attic to keep their new potion ingredient in the kitchen.

"So, Billie?" Phoebe asked as Piper left and Paige took a deep breath before grabbing the book off the stand and heading for the attic door.

"Let's go downstairs. Coop and Henry have been waiting for an update too," she explained and the three of them left the attic and met Henry, Coop, Prue, and Piper in the sitting room.

Phoebe looked towards Coop whose expression was one of stone and he refused to meet her eyes. He was still furious at her for going to see Cole alone, and she rolled her eyes at his overprotective nature. If she knew anything it was Cole, and she needed Coop to trust her with how to deal with him. She thought about sitting next to Coop, but his eyes were still dark with anger so she sat next to Piper instead.

"We haven't found anything on Billie," Paige admitted sadly. "But we did find this on dormant powers," she said tilting the book so Phoebe could read it. "It's basically what Leo said," she confirmed. "Because of the resurrection their memories are tied to their powers, so when their powers become dormant, so do their memories, but if we can activate their powers we can activate their memories," Paige explained in one quick breath and Piper glanced at Prue to see a hesitant expression on her face.

"So we just have to get Prue to use her powers," Phoebe summarized, eager to get her sister back the way she remembered her. She chanced a look at Piper who nodded knowing that they were both thinking the same thing. If they could get Prue to tap into her magic, their sister was back. For good.

They could be a family again. Prue could meet Wyatt and Chris and she could get to know Paige. They could tell her all the things they'd been up to the past six years and go to her for advice again. They could reminisce about their childhood without feeling a sharp pain of loss whenever Prue was involved in a memory. She would be back to tell them stories about their mother like she used to when they were younger…

"How do we get her to use them?" Piper asked suddenly unable to think of anything other than her sister. She knew Billie needed their help, but Prue was the most powerful witch of all of them. She would be able to help them help Billie.

"We need to remember what her trigger was," Leo explained and Phoebe nodded. "Cole found his own trigger which was-"

"Phoebe," Coop spat out, not bothering to hide the disgust from his voice.

"I was going to say demonic," Leo replied knowing that now was not the time for Phoebe and Coop to have the argument that seemed inevitable.

"Well Prue's trigger was anger," Phoebe stated remembering when she and Prue had switched powers and she had to get angry to use the telekinesis.

"Well then, I think it's time to piss Prue off," Piper said with a happy smile turning to face Prue. "Phoebe, that was usually your specialty," she said grinning at the prospect of repairing her family which she had thought had been forever broken.

**Thanks for reading, and again I'm sorry for the wait. Please leave a review and let me know what you liked/disliked.  
**


	20. Chapter 20

**Again, I'm really sorry for the wait for this chapter. We were on our way home from vacation and our flight was delayed 8 hours. We were up all night traveling. The day after we got home was my sister's birthday so we were pretty busy. And then the day after that we had to put our dog to sleep. She was 14, but she was my best friend. I just haven't really been up to writing since then. But now I finally have a chapter ready for you guys. I hope you enjoy it! Please let me know what you think, good or bad.**

Ch. 20

"Just wave your hand at it," Piper instructed as she demonstrated the motion for Prue. "See if you can move it," she said gesturing towards the candle sitting on the floor.

Prue looked at her skeptically, but Phoebe and Paige were waiting impatiently so she sighed and looked at the candle. She waved her hand like Piper had shown her, but nothing happened. She looked back up at Piper and then Phoebe silently asking what to do next when Leo walked into the attic.

"Concentrate," he offered having heard the conversation from the stairs. "See yourself moving the candle."

Forcing herself not to sigh out loud, Prue visualized the candle moving across the floor and repeated the action of waving her hand. The candle remained motionless, and this time she sighed audibly wondering whether or not she was disappointed. She still wasn't sure if she wanted to get her powers back. Apparently her sisters still had this Power of Three thing that they raved about, so did they really need her?

Would it be so bad if she never did get her powers back? She let out another sigh knowing that even if she wasn't sure about her powers, she did want her memory back. She wanted to be able to remember her sisters. She'd only been around them for a couple days and she was already feeling a strong bond with them so she could tell that they had been close before her death.

"Try squinting your eyes," Phoebe suggested jolting Prue from her thoughts. "That's what you did when you first got your powers," she said and Prue nodded with a new resolve to get her powers back so she could remember her family.

Paige, Piper, Phoebe, and Leo watched as Prue squinted her eyes in the direction of the candle, but after a few seconds, nothing had happened. Prue relaxed her eyes and shook her head.

"I'm sorry," she said feeling guilty that she wasn't able to access her powers.

"It's okay," Leo assured her. "All your powers are tied to your emotions, and the more you guys want them to work the less they usually do," he explained with a half smile and Paige raised her eyebrows and nodded in agreement.

"If anyone can get them back, it's you Prue," Piper said reverently as she stared at her big sister. Despite Prue not remembering anything from their past, she still had the same personality and mannerisms, and Piper knew that Prue was the most determined person she'd ever known. If she wanted her powers back, she would get them eventually.

"I doubt it," Phoebe snorted and Piper looked at her in surprise wondering how Phoebe could say something so cruel at a time like this. When their gazes met, Piper saw Phoebe pleading with her eyes that Piper understand what she was trying to do. "Prue was selfish," Phoebe continued still staring at Piper who nodded catching on to what Phoebe was doing. Prue's trigger was anger. As much as they would rather she be able to access her powers on her own, Leo was right. Their powers were linked to their emotions and they were pressed for time. They needed Prue to get her powers back soon.

"Right. Like when she stole my Malibu Barbie," Piper agreed, both of them turning to face Prue. "You were nine and didn't even want it. You just didn't want me to have it!" Piper exclaimed and Phoebe knew they were both knowingly trying to manipulate Prue's emotions.

"Well she stole my clothes every day!" Phoebe yelled and Leo had to bite back a laugh remembering on more than one occasion Prue complaining that Phoebe was the one borrowing clothes. "And usually stained them," she continued and Paige backed up slightly unable to participate but wanting to watch the scene in front of her.

"But-"

"Oh no!" Piper cut Prue off before she could retaliate. "None of you talking your way out of this now," she said pointing her finger at Prue. "Little Miss Popular Always Gets What She Wants," Piper spat out knowing there was a lot of truth to that statement. She'd loved Prue but had always resented the fact that she was popular and had such an easy time with people.

"Not Rodger," Phoebe said smugly and Piper's eyes widened surprised that Phoebe would bring up Prue's ex-fiancé. "He couldn't imagine marrying you after I got to him," Phoebe taunted Prue who's face showed her shock that her own sister would go behind her back with her future husband. Paige too was surprised and glanced at Leo who shook his head slightly so only Paige could see indicating that this was yet another exaggeration. "He traded you in for a younger, more experienced model, Prue," Phoebe sneered stepping closer to Prue. "And he never looked back once," she gloated.

She opened her mouth to continue but was cut off when Prue's hand connected sharply with the side of her face. The sound of the slap silenced everyone else in the attic and Phoebe winced in pain.

"Get out," Prue whispered coldly feeling a deep sense of betrayal for what Phoebe had just admitted to. She knew that she must have already found out about it once when she was alive, but she felt like it was all brand new. She couldn't believe Phoebe would do that to her. During the past couple days when she'd been getting to know her sisters she'd felt like they were her best friends. They had a bond she'd never imagined having with anyone, but clearly it meant more to her than it did to Phoebe, and that hurt.

"Fine," Phoebe agreed, silently leaving the attic feeling a few tears sting her eyes. She felt guilty for pushing Prue, but she didn't know how else to get her to access her powers. She couldn't just bring up random spats from the past because Prue didn't remember them. She had to come up with things that would make any woman angry and Rodger was the first thing that came to mind.

"I'm going to…" Paige trailed off and pointed towards where Phoebe left having seen how upset she had been. Leo and Piper nodded knowing that Phoebe was undoubtedly feeling guilty. Paige left Prue, Piper, and Leo in the attic and silently prayed that her oldest sister's temper was short.

"Prue," Piper said forcing all the emotion out of her voice. "You never treated us like sisters," she explained hoping that if and when Prue got her memory back she would forgive her and Phoebe. "After mom died and dad left you-"

"Our mother is dead?" Prue asked the shock and horror evident in her voice. Realization dawned on Piper who glanced at Leo. Of course Prue wouldn't know that. How could she? Piper saw the pain flash across Prue's face as she understood that she would never meet her mother.

"Um, yes," Piper replied feeling guilty for having to tell Prue that their mother was dead.

"How?" she asked and Piper briefly considered lying to her. Yet at the same time, Prue had always been angry about the circumstances around their mother's death…

"A demon," she answered simply knowing that Prue couldn't understand the details about Sam and the camp in her current state. Instead of the burst of anger Piper had been hoping for, Prue simply looked as if she was about to break down into tears. After only a few seconds, Prue shook her head and got her emotions under control.

"You said our dad left?" she questioned bitterly and Piper smiled to herself. Maybe this would be her opportunity.

"After mom died," she told her leaving out the part about how Grams sent him away. "He was mortal and didn't like that we were witches," she explained. She chanced a quick look at Leo who only nodded encouraging her telling of this version of the truth. "So he left us to live with Grams. We never really heard from him."

"Is he dead too?" Prue snapped and Piper suddenly felt as if she'd been taken back in time to when Prue had hated their father.

"No," Piper told her and Prue rolled her eyes.

"Of course not," she said sarcastically. "Our mother who loved us is dead, but our father who couldn't even bother to call us, let alone raise us, is alive and well," she fumed, the pain evident in her voice. Without waiting for Piper's response, Prue stormed out of the attic.

Piper turned to Leo with a sigh wishing she had handled the situation differently. She had become used to being the oldest sister, but now with Prue back, even without her memory, Piper could feel herself falling back into her role as a follower. She was questioning her own decisions and wondering what to do at every turn. They were no closer to finding Billie or helping Prue get her powers back, and the weight of the situation seemed to hit Piper in that moment.

"Piper," Leo said softly as he could see the stress and doubt cross his wife's features. "You're doing a good job," he encouraged as he stepped closer to her. Reaching out so his hands were on her shoulders he bent down so his eyes were level with hers. "This is how you work, remember?" he said with a slight smile. "You worry, you panic, and then you kick ass," he teased and Piper sighed before nodding knowing that he was right.

She opened her mouth to reply but was cut off by a crash from downstairs. Rushing from the attic she hurried to the stairs to see what kind of attack was causing the noise, but stopped when she reached the landing. She saw Prue glaring angrily at Phoebe, who had glass shattered at her feet, and the new vase that had once sat atop the end table was now gone.

"That was a new vase," Piper whined at Prue before stepping into the foyer with her sisters. Paige had stepped back with Coop and Henry feeling the need to stay out of the way.

"Forget the damn vase, Piper!" Phoebe exclaimed angrily and Piper could tell she wasn't acting anymore. "At least Prue bothered to _move_ something!" she yelled gesturing towards the shattered glass. "But God forbid she get her powers back so she's actually of some use to us."

"Well I'm sorry I'm not anxious to get my powers back and throw myself into suicide missions every day," Prue shouted back and Piper stepped in between them trying to mediate the situation.

"Prue," she began but Phoebe cut her off.

"You never did want to be a witch," she recalled, the hurt evident in her voice. "This is perfect for you," she said with a humorless laugh. "Come back from the dead with no memories. You can start a new life without your pesky sisters or your pesky Wiccan duties," she yelled flinging her arms out to the sides.

"Phoebe, stop it!" Piper demanded knowing that Prue's concerns were valid. "She doesn't know what she's saying," she explained which only served to infuriate Prue more.

"The hell I don't!" she defended herself. "I may not remember you guys or being a witch, but I saw those demons attack Phoebe and Billie's kidnapped," she reminded them pointedly. "I don't want to ruin my life by getting my pow-"

"Magic doesn't ruin your life," Phoebe interrupted and Prue rolled her eyes.

"Right," Prue scoffed. "I'm sure a demonic kidnapping was exactly what Billie had planned for the day. You guys sure did a hell of a job training her by the way," she said sarcastically and Piper turned so she was completely facing Prue.

"Well Prue, you weren't here!" she yelled finally losing her temper. "You went off and got yourself killed," she screamed her voice much louder than normal. "You were the strongest of all of us and then-"

"So you just need me because I was the strongest," Prue concluded and Piper let out a frustrated groan before turning her back to Prue. Instead Phoebe stalked over so she was only inches from Prue.

"If that's really what you think after spending these last few days with us, then you aren't our sister," she whispered through clenched teeth. Without waiting for Prue or Piper to disagree, she rushed from the room before her tears fell.

"You certainly aren't the sister that always took care of us," Piper nearly snarled feeling protective of Phoebe, annoyed at Prue, and hurt herself.

"No, I'm not," Prue agreed her frustration evident. "I don't know who I am, remember?" she asked. When Piper didn't respond Prue scoffed and shook her head. "Well _I_ certainly don't remember," she muttered and Piper snorted in annoyance.

"That's because you're not trying hard enough!" she exclaimed furiously and she forced herself to reign in her emotions before she blew up the house.

"I AM trying," Prue defended and Piper scoffed in disbelief.

"NO, you AREN'T," she yelled and this time the coffee table behind Prue blew up. When Phoebe heard the explosion she came back into the foyer and saw the damage.

"Dammit Piper!" she shouted and walked towards the remains of the table. "We needed that-"

"Just shut UP, Phoebe," Piper responded angrily and Phoebe glared at her.

"No," Phoebe argued refusing to be quiet when she felt like her life was falling apart. A few angry tears fell from her eyes, but she brushed them away before continuing. "I'm not going to just shut up when one of my sisters doesn't even care she has amnesia and another sister is blowing up the house!"

"Well at least I still have all my powers," she shot back and Phoebe recoiled in shock. The hurt on her face was obvious, but Piper was too angry to care at that point. "For someone so into her Wiccan duties you sure used your powers for personal gain, didn't you?" she reminded her and Phoebe's face hardened as she felt a new surge of anger rising inside of her. "I'm not sure if that was better or worse than when you were pregnant with the Source of all Evil!" she spat out and Phoebe was practically shaking with fury.

"Well what about you Miss I'm Not Going to Tell my Husband How I Feel About Him Becoming an Elder, So By Keeping ALL These Emotions Inside I'll Make My Empath Sister Punch Him and Then I'll Just Become a Valkyrie!" she yelled purposely throwing back one of Piper's worst choices. "Forget about my son, forget about my sisters…" she continued seeing that she was hurting Piper as much as Piper had hurt her.

"Guys," Prue said sharply but both Phoebe and Piper ignored her.

"How about wanting to say a mermaid forever, huh?" Piper shot back and Phoebe scoffed. "Or not dealing with your pain so you became a Banshee? Or let's just say your ENTIRE relationship with Cole in general?" she yelled gesticulating wildly, and Phoebe had to hold back the urge to slap Piper.

"Phoebe, Piper," Paige called hesitantly feeling like she needed to do something to stop the fight that was unfolding in front of her. She'd never seen her sisters like this. She understood that they were on an emotional rollercoaster from the events of the past few days, but they couldn't be coming unhinged like this right now.

"Stay out of this Paige," Piper ordered and Paige had to bite her tongue to keep from joining in the argument herself. "You _really_ don't want us pointing out all the screw ups you've had as a witch!" Piper shot out and Paige's eyes narrowed in outrage.

"Switching our bodies!" Phoebe chimed in before Paige could defend herself. "NEVER listening to us," she added and Paige scoffed in annoyance.

"Piper," Prue called, but the other three sisters were too far gone to notice their oldest sister's predicament.

"You're bringing that up now?" Paige cried out furiously. "Seriously Phoebe?" she asked in disbelief. "After everything you've done? How about when you freed the evil genie from the bottle without reading the fine print!" she yelled and Phoebe stomped a few feet closer to Paige.

"Well you're the one who-"

"Stop it!" Prue exclaimed before she suddenly fell silent and motionless. The three girls stopped their argument abruptly and stared at Prue's limp body standing in their foyer.

"Did she…?" Phoebe asked hurrying back to Prue's side as her breath caught in her throat.

"Piper? Phoebe?" they heard Prue yell with a confidence and familiarity they hadn't heard since her return.

"Prue?" Phoebe called back desperately before Prue's body suddenly came back to life in front of them. "Prue," Phoebe breathed out as Prue threw her arms around Piper and Phoebe. "Oh God," she cried with tears falling from her eyes as she fell into Prue's embrace.

"You astral projected," Piper said stupidly and Prue laughed slightly as tears leaked from her eyes.

"Yeah," she said nodding. "I wanted to get away from you guys arguing," she admitted clutching her sisters.

"W-where did you go?" Piper asked, stunned and Prue shook her head.

"Just the kitchen," she admitted sheepishly before her breath hitched in her throat. "I remember you guys," she whispered and Phoebe let out a sob before her tears finally took over.

"We never forgot you," Piper murmured as she too began to cry.

"We missed you so much, Prue," Phoebe gasped as Prue nodded against her shoulder.

"I know," she whimpered as she finally stepped back so she could look at her sisters. "I was always watching you," she assured them. "With mom and Grams," she said with a tearful smile. "We were all so proud of you," she said as Leo walked over with a wide smile.

"Prue," he said and Prue grinned through her tears before giving her brother in law a tight hug. "Oh, we all missed you," he sighed surprised at how relieved he felt that she had her memory back. "It was never the same around here without you," he told her pulling back to look at her once again. "Wayyy less arguing," he teased with a wink and all three sisters laughed as they stared at each other in amazement.

"I love you all," Prue promised them before turning her gaze away from them and across the room. "But I'd like to meet my newest sister," she whispered as her eyes met Paige's with a smile.

"Oh, Paige!" Piper exclaimed immediately feeling guilty for excluding her in their reunion despite the unusual circumstances. "Come over here," she encouraged and Paige hesitantly stepped over, uncharacteristically shy in front of her new sister.

"We've all watched you too Paige," Prue revealed with a soft smile. "And you've become a true Halliwell regardless of your last name," she said before stepping forward and wrapping her in a hug. "I can't wait to get to know you," she said knowing she would need to be the one to make the effort with the younger girl.

"I always wanted to meet you," Paige admitted quietly as she stepped back. "I tried to summon you once," she told her and Prue nodded sympathetically. "But…"

"They wouldn't let you," she answered for her with a sigh as Paige nodded. "Well, they interfere with a lot of things," she said vaguely before taking a deep breath. "And as much as I want to sit with you guys all day, we have a witch to find."


	21. Chapter 21

**Sorry about the wait again. I've been really busy watching the Olympics! Anyways, here's a long one for you guys. Please leave a review and let me know what you think (good or bad!). **

Ch. 21

"Okay," Prue said as they all gathered in the attic to formulate a plan to help Billie. "You're going to have to fill me in here. I wasn't understanding everything you guys told me when I didn't have my memory," she admitted and Piper nodded gesturing for Paige to explain since she was Billie's whitelighter.

"Well she had the day off from work today so she was just hanging out at home," she began and Prue stood behind the Book and felt a surge of emotions run through her. After all this time she was back with her sisters doing what she was born to do. A sense of belonging washed over her, but she knew that now wasn't the time to get carried away in nostalgia. Forcing those thoughts of her mind, she focused her attention on Paige. "Then all of a sudden I just had this blinding pain that I could sense was from her," she explained and Prue nodded understanding.

"So she's being magically blocked?" she assumed and the other three girls nodded smiling slightly at the fact that Prue was as quick as she had always been. "And I assume you've tried the summoning spells?" she asked and Piper glanced at Phoebe realizing that they hadn't. They'd been too distracted with Prue to spend much time on Billie. "I doubt they'd work, but you tried them?"

"Actually…" Piper said feeling guilty for forgetting about something so simple when Billie was in trouble.

"I did," Paige assured them all and Piper and Phoebe let out a sigh of relief. "They didn't work," she stated and Prue nodded.

"I didn't really think they would," she said before glancing up at Piper and Phoebe. Reminding herself to include Paige, she looked to her as well before continuing to explain her plan. "So we go to her apartment and see if we can find anything. Fast," she said turning to Leo. "You stay here with Coop and Henry and if Cole comes back you call us," she instructed and Leo nodded immediately.

"You'll hear us if we call for you?" Henry asked in confusion wondering why Paige had never told him that she could hear him if she called for him.

"On the cell phone? Yeah," Prue replied smiling as Henry nodded sheepishly. "I know you're mortal, but you've been around us a while. Try to catch on a little quicker next time," she suggested with a playful wink. "Questions?" she asked the room and everyone shook their heads. "Okay," she said reaching for Paige's hand. Phoebe and Piper followed her lead and soon all four sisters were ready to orb. "Let's go."

"So…that's Prue," Henry said as the girls disappeared and Leo chuckled.

"Yeah," he answered happily. "That's Prue."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Now what?" Paige asked feeling a bit like a fourth wheel. Prue, Piper, and Phoebe had quickly fallen back into a pattern where Prue took control and always knew what to do. That was new for Paige. Since she'd been a Charmed One the three sisters had all acted as equals and she was thrown off by this new dynamic.

"We look around," Prue stated with a shrug as the four sisters separated and walked in different directions. "Call her cell phone," she instructed and Paige looked up at her in confusion.

"You really think she'll get reception wherever the demons are holding her?" she asked and Prue rolled her eyes at her youngest sister.

"No, but if her phone is still here then she was probably taken from the apartment. If her stuff is gone, then she left willingly and was taken from somewhere else," Prue reasoned and Paige cursed herself for doubting Prue. She had to remind herself that Prue did know what she was doing. Despite her recent arrival, she wasn't exactly a newcomer to the game. Instead of responding, Paige did as she was asked and called Billie's cell phone. It rang and went to voicemail, but they didn't hear it anywhere in the apartment.

"I got her voicemail," Paige announced and Phoebe walked out of Billie's bedroom.

"And I don't see her purse anywhere," she added and Prue nodded having already checked the living room for it herself. "I think she must have left here willingly. She was probably on her way somewhere when she was taken," she concluded before Piper called them over to the bedroom where she had disappeared to only seconds ago.

"Her Book of Shadows is out," Piper noted as her sisters came up behind her and noticed the thin, but steadily growing book lying open on the floor. Phoebe mentally scolded herself for having not seen that when she was checking for Billie's purse, but Piper continued her observations. "And a couple potions are gone. I know she had at least one that duplicated my freezing power, and there aren't any of those here," she said gesturing towards the box at the foot of the bed.

"So she went to vanquish a demon?" Phoebe asked annoyed that Billie would do that alone. "Alone?"

"And got herself kidnapped," Prue pointed out while rolling her eyes.

"Well she obviously thought she could handle it," Paige said automatically defending Billie's actions.

"It was probably a trap," Prue reasoned and Paige conceded knowing that Prue's situation was highly likely. "Either way, we-" Prue was cut off when there was a hesitant knocking on the front door of the apartment. The four sisters glanced at the doorway of the bedroom and then at each other wondering what to do. It was probably just a friend visiting Billie in which case they probably shouldn't answer. But what if it was someone that knew something or was trying to help?

"Should we answer it?" Phoebe finally asked and Piper simply looked at Prue.

"Wh-don't look at me!" Prue exclaimed in surprise. "You've been doing fine leading these two for all these years," she pointed out as she gestured towards Phoebe and Paige. "I don't know if we should answer the door," she admitted and Paige sighed before walking out of the bedroom. The other three followed close behind her knowing that she had made up her mind and was answering the door.

When Paige yanked the door open, the four sisters stood looking at a young girl about Billie's age who glanced at the apartment number again when she saw them answer the door. In confusion she looked at them, but they all remained silent. Finally Paige spoke up.

"Can we help you?" she asked and the girl looked to all four sisters wondering why they were there.

"Um, I was looking for Billie," she explained and Piper nodded taking pity on the girl.

"She's not here right now. We're uh, friends of hers," she assured the girl. "We can let her know you stopped by," she offered and the girl nodded.

"Just tell her that Ashlyne stopped by. I wanted to thank her for helping me with my um…problem earlier today," she said and the hesitation wasn't lost on the sisters. Ashlyne started to leave but Piper called out to her.

"Hold it!" she ordered and Ashlyne turned back to the sisters. "What kind of problem?" she asked and Ashlyne chewed on her bottom lip unsure of what to say.

"Hey, Ashlyne," Prue said drawing the girl's attention to her now. "Billie's in some trouble with demons," Prue explained and the second they saw the horror instead of disbelief on the girl's face they knew that this girl knew of the magical world. "Okay," Prue said with the smile she had always used when trying to explain to mortals the realities of the demonic way. Noticing that Ashlyne's mind had trailed off Prue waved her hand slightly in front of her face. "Um, hi. Yeah," Prue let out in relief when she saw Ashlyne was back with them. "Do you know anything about what happened?" she asked and Ashlyne nodded slightly. "Then come in," Prue said stepping aside as Ashlyne stepped into the apartment.

"On my way to work this morning this guy started chasing me," Ashlyne started her explanation immediately feeling guilty for getting Billie into danger. "He was some kind of demon. I eventually got away from him and hid in an alley," she said and the four sisters stayed quiet waiting for her to finish her story. "Eventually Billie found me, I told her everything, and she took me up here. She got some potions and stuff, we went back to that alley and the demon came back for me. She threw the potion and the demon died," she said simply but the sisters knew there was probably a lot more to the story than Ashlyne understood.

"How exactly did he die?" Paige asked skeptically and Ashlyne shrugged.

"He just turned into smoke and then there was a pile of ash lying there," she replied and the sisters all sighed having all come to the same conclusion. "What?" she asked in concern noticing the change in the sisters' demeanors.

"The demon probably didn't die," Paige said knowing they didn't have time to sugar coat things. "Did you leave then?" she asked and Ashlyne nodded. "Prue you were right," Paige conceded turning to her oldest sister. "It was a trap for Billie," she sighed and the four sisters looked at each other wondering what demon would want to capture Billie.

Suddenly there was another knock on the door and this time the girls didn't hesitate to answer knowing that they couldn't risk missing any clues. They yanked the door open without checking to see who was on the other side, but were stunned when they recognized who was there.

"Luke?" Phoebe asked and Ashlyne walked up behind them.

"Luke, what are you doing here?" Ashlyne asked and the four sisters looked between Ashlyne and Luke knowing that there had to be a connection that they were missing. Piper literally grabbed Luke's arm and pulled him into the apartment and slammed the door shut behind him. "Luke?" Ashlyne asked again, but before Luke could answer Piper raised her hand up and froze Ashlyne.

"What is THIS?" Piper asked pointing between Luke and Ashlyne.

"What do you mean?" he asked in confusion.

"What do I mean?" Piper repeated her voice slightly higher in pitch than normal. "This. I mean _this_," she retorted again gesturing between Luke and Ashlyne.

"She's one of my charges. A future whitelighter," he explained wondering what the problem was, and Paige sighed resting her forehead in the palm of her hand.

"That's probably why the demon chose her. If he didn't get Billie, at least he got a future whitelighter," Phoebe reasoned and Luke's eyes widened in shock and alarm.

"What?" he yelled out glancing at Ashlyne who although frozen, appeared to be fine physically. "What do you mean demon? What happened?"

"She," Prue explained gesturing towards Ashlyne, but couldn't continue before Luke raised his hand to stop her.

"Who are you?" he asked and Phoebe let out a humorless laugh before replying.

"Prue," she answered simply and the look of recognition on Luke's face made it clear that he knew who she was. "It's a long story. We don't have time right now," she told him and Luke nodded slightly, knowing that now was not the time but dying to hear the full explanation regarding Prue's reappearance.

"Ashlyne was being followed by a demon. Long story short, Billie was tricked into helping her. Then that demon took Billie and we can't find her," Prue summarized and Luke's face paled and his eyes were filled with horror as the truth hit him.

"It's my fault," he whispered as his jaw clenched tightly. "I should have known Ashlyne was in trouble," he muttered, his eyes dropping to the floor unable to look at any of the sisters right now.

"What are you doing here now?" Paige asked and Luke looked up knowing he had to force his emotions to the back of his mind until they got Billie back.

"They told me that Ashlyne was about to find out about whitelighters and she can't," he explained and Paige nodded. "Not yet," he added. "She just thinks we're friends who met by chance about a week ago," he murmured still consumed by guilt over what had happened to Billie. "We haven't really formed the bond yet," he whispered shaking his head slightly and the four sisters were at a loss for what to say. "I should have known," he muttered quietly under his breath shoving his hands into his pockets. "Damn," he breathed out running a hand across the back of his neck. "Now what?" he finally asked looking up at the witches.

"Okay," Prue gathered her thoughts before turning to her sisters. "So we need to get all the information from her that we can and then get her out of here and NOT tell her about whitelighters, got it?" she asked and the other three of them nodded. Piper unfroze Ashlyne who was still staring at Luke in confusion.

"Well, uh Luke as you can see Billie isn't here," Phoebe spoke up glancing towards Ashlyne giving her a look warning her not to say anything. In Ashlyne's mind they still had to keep this secret from Luke. "We'll tell her you stopped by," Phoebe promised with a false but believable smile as Prue began ushering Luke out the door. Luke nodded and exited the apartment before the four sisters turned back to Ashlyne.

"We need you to tell us everything you can about this demon," Prue explained as they all seated themselves around Billie's living room. "What he looked like, what kind of things he could do…anything," she said and Ashlyne nodded while Phoebe picked up a pad of paper and pen from the coffee table.

"He looked like a regular guy," Ashlyne began and Paige nodded encouragingly. "He was cute. Dark hair, green eyes…" she trailed off with a shrug unsure of what else to say. "He could lock my car doors with his mind," she offered and Phoebe hurriedly wrote that down. "He was fast and strong," she said before shaking her head. "I'm sorry. I don't know what else," she admitted and Paige smiled.

"It's okay," she assured her while touching her shoulder affectionately.

"Was there anything unusual about the demon?" Piper pressed and Ashlyne thought hard. "Like other people's reactions, markings on his body, his size?" she questioned and suddenly Ashlyne perked up.

"He had a tattoo," she recalled and the four sisters looked at her expectantly. "I mean, I guess it was a tattoo. It was on his arm," she said pointing on her arm where the demon had had the marking. "It was some kind of dragon, but it had two heads," she said and the four sisters all shared a knowing look.

"That sounds demonic," Phoebe said and they all agreed before they stood and motioned for Ashlyne to do the same.

"Okay," Prue said turning to Ashlyne. "We have to go take care of this," she said gesturing towards her sisters. "But you should get going and if you need anything just yell really loud for Luke," she told her and Ashlyne looked at her curiously. "Just trust us. We um, did some magic. He can help now," she muttered stupidly but Ashlyne just shrugged and with a simple thank you and good luck she was out of the apartment.

"We did some magic?" Phoebe questioned with a raised brow and Prue sighed.

"Well I couldn't tell her about whitelighters and we have to orb home," Prue retorted as she grabbed her sisters' hands. "Let's go check the book," she said as the four sisters left for the manor.

"Did you find anything?" Piper asked as she entered the attic followed by Leo and Prue. Phoebe and Paige had stayed with the book looking for the demon while Piper had prepared food for everyone. She brought two sandwiches in for her sisters and handed them to Paige and Phoebe who took them gratefully. They ate quickly knowing that time was a luxury they did not have.

"Not yet," Phoebe replied, her mouth full. "But we're still looking," she assured them and sure enough there were still quite a few pages left to go in the book.

"What if the demon isn't in there?" Paige asked and Prue glanced at her to see that her youngest sister was very worried for her missing friend.

"We'll find her, Paige," Prue promised with a comforting smile. "Even being death didn't stop me," she winked and noticed a small smile cross Paige's face.

"Here!" Phoebe exclaimed suddenly as her eyes scanned the page in front of her. "Valac," she announced, her sandwich now forgotten as all four sisters gathered around behind her. "His symbol is a dragon with two heads and all of his followers must bear the symbol somewhere on their body," she read as she absorbed the information given by the book. "It says all his minions have the powers of telekinesis, mild mind control over mortals, and transmogrification," she concluded and Piper sighed.

"Well that's why he could change himself into smoke and ash to make Billie think she'd vanquished him," she reasoned and Prue nodded. "How do we vanquish him?" she asked having difficulty reading the small print of the book with all four of them crowded around it.

"Power of Three," Phoebe answered simply and they all smiled.

"How about the Power of Four?" Prue grinned excitedly looking at all of her sisters. "Now we just have to find him," she mused and they became serious once again. "Does the book say anything else, Phoebe?" she questioned but Phoebe shook her head.

"Valac rarely surfaces and his reputation and habits are known only by the demonic community," she read before coming to the end of the entry on Valac. "That's it," she finished and Paige looked at her pointedly. She didn't say anything, but Phoebe could tell that there was something on her mind. "What?" she asked and Paige sighed quietly.

"I hate to even suggest this, but we're running out of time, Billie could be really hurt, and-"

"Paige," Piper warned, her patience already wearing thin.

"Would Cole…or Belthazor know about Valac?" Paige asked hesitantly and Phoebe's eyes fell to the book in front of her no longer able to maintain eye contact with any of her sisters. The four girls and Leo fell into an uncomfortable silence, everyone unsure of what their next move should be.

"She's right, Phoebes," Prue finally said quietly and Phoebe looked up.

"I know," she murmured with a slight nod. "I'm not sure he'll help us though," she admitted sadly and Prue nodded.

"It's our best chance right now," she reminded her.

"I don't know where he is," Phoebe pointed out and Prue stepped closer to the book and gently began turning the pages until she came to the spell she'd been looking for. Phoebe glanced at the page and understood immediately what Prue was doing. Phoebe stepped back and allowed Prue to do what had to be done without her interference. Taking a deep breath, Prue began to say the spell.

"_Magic forces black and white_

_Reaching out through space and light_

_Be he far or be he near_

_Bring us the demon Belthazor here."_

The four witches and Leo watched as a bright light appeared and seemed to glow for a moment. Cole's form could be seen inside the hazy light, and in a few seconds the light had disappeared leaving only an annoyed Cole in their presence.

"You _summoned _me?" he accused and Prue stepped forward.

"Yes," she answered and he smirked slightly.

"I take it you got your memory back," he muttered and in answer Prue simply waved her hand and flung Cole to the other side of the attic leaving him to crash into the wall. Landing hard on his side Cole chuckled and stood up, brushing dust off of himself as he did so. "Oh Prue I'd say it's good to have you back, but it's just not worth the effort to lie," he said and Prue narrowed her eyes, but controlled her magical impulses. "So what is it?" he asked and nobody answered him. "Did you make my vanquishing potion this quickly?" he asked as his eyes met Phoebe's briefly. She thought she detected a flash of disappointment in his eyes, but it was gone just as quickly as it had appeared. "I'm touched that I was such a priority," he deadpanned and Phoebe sighed sadly.

"We need your help," she admitted and a contemptuous grin consumed his face.

"My help?" he questioned clapping once at the irony of the situation. "And what makes you think I'd be willing to help you?" he asked leaning towards the sisters, his expression never giving away what his intentions were even to Phoebe.

"Trust me Cole, your help is the last thing we want," Paige assured him. "But we need it," she admitted, her eyes narrowed in distrust.

"Unfortunately she's right," Prue agreed and Cole chuckled shaking his head.

"I can't believe I have to deal with the both of you," he muttered in disgust looking between Paige and Prue. "I took you for granted, Piper," he mused shooting her a smirk that she ignored.

"We need you Cole," Phoebe repeated hoping to play on his guilt and love for her. She knew it was a low blow, but they were really pressed for time. Besides, he'd done a lot of low things. He owed her this.

"Then maybe I'll need a little something from you…" he murmured glancing down her body, not bothering to hide the lustful thoughts from his face, "in return."

"Forget it," Piper said immediately seeing what Cole was getting at, but Cole never took his eyes off of Phoebe's. "Just crawl back into whatever hole you came from and-"

"Fine," Phoebe agreed interrupting her sister. "Just help us," she insisted and he grinned widely. Prue, Piper, and Paige all looked at Phoebe in shock that she had accepted Cole's offer. Although unspoken, he had made his terms known and to the rest of them they had been unacceptable. Before Cole could respond, Piper reached up and froze him before turning to Phoebe.

"Are you out of your mind?" Paige asked and Phoebe shook her head.

"He won't follow through with it," Phoebe said confidently. "It would be too easy for him," she pointed out, her eyes never leaving Cole's motionless body. Even frozen his dark eyes captivated her and jumbled her thoughts. "He wants me to want him," she reminded them and her three sisters sighed knowing that she was right. "It's all a mind game to Cole. And this time I have to win," she whispered before turning to Piper. "Unfreeze him. We have to get Billie," she said, and without another word Piper unfroze Cole who stumbled slightly and rolled his eyes as he realized what had happened.

"So what did you decide during your little sisterly chat?" he asked, surprised when Phoebe looked him square in the eye, her gaze never wavering.

"Help us," she confirmed and he smirked, pleased that they had agreed to his terms. "We have to find her," she added and Cole's smile faltered slightly knowing that it definitely wasn't going to be easy. If it took more than all fourCharmed Ones…someone was going to get killed and he just hoped it wasn't anyone on his side.


	22. Chapter 22

**I've had this done for a couple days, but I wanted to give you guys a chance to review the last chapter first. I got less reviews for the last chapter than I have for any of the others! Is that because you guys didn't like it or did you guys just get busy and not get a chance to review? I was hoping to get at least one more review. The feedback really helps. I would love to hear what you guys think about my characterization of Cole and what you would like to see happen with him in the future. **

Ch. 22

"Valac?" Cole asked, still surprised by what the sisters had told him. "You're sure about this?" he questioned skeptically and Phoebe nodded but Paige stepped in feeling she'd been silent for too long.

"Yes Cole, we're sure," she said exasperatedly. "Now do you know anything that can help us or not?" she asked impatiently and he smirked at her.

"Paige you always were one for instant gratification, weren't you?" he mused before looking towards the sister he had always felt was his soul mate. As his eyes locked with Phoebe's he spoke up knowing that his next comment was likely to cause trouble, but he was unable to stop himself. "Phoebe understood the benefits of prolonging the pleasure," he smirked and Phoebe's eyes darkened in anger at his comments.

Coop snorted and shook his head, before sinking onto the couch in the attic where he and Henry had joined the girls a few minutes ago. "Oh Cooper," Cole muttered disgustedly, turning his gaze to the man to his right. "I would hope by _now_ you would have figured that out. I mean, you are a cupid after all," Cole taunted taking a small step closer to the couch where Coop was sitting. "With that on your side you'd _think_ you just might have an edge over what Phoebe had with me," he whispered, but before Coop could reply Piper stepped in.

"We don't have time for this," she said glaring at Cole knowing that he was purposely antagonizing Coop. "We have to find Billie. So Cole, if you can't help us, then get out. If you can help, then do it," she ordered and Cole's eyes remained fixed on Coop for a moment even while he finally spoke.

"Valac doesn't work in the Underworld," he finally revealed and the girls nodded for him to continue. "He has endless resources. He probably knows Prue is back," he said turning to face them and the sisters glanced at each other.

"So he took Billie to get to us," Phoebe mused and Cole nodded, his eyes meeting hers briefly before she looked away.

"That's what I would have done," he confirmed and she sighed. "But he'll keep her alive until you find her. He doesn't want to kill her," he assured them and Paige let out an audible sigh of relief.

"So Billie's okay," Paige breathed and Cole chuckled at her tone.

"You whitelighters are all the same," he murmured under his breath but made sure it was loud enough for Paige to hear. "Always so optimistic. I didn't say she was okay," he pointed out and Paige's eyes narrowed in his direction. "Just that she was alive. He'll torture her to inches from her death," he promised and the only one who didn't seem surprised was Phoebe. She was used to his way of revealing the truth in layers so it cut as deep as it could. "Maybe take her powers," he guessed. "But he won't kill her until he has you."

"How do we find him?" Phoebe asked knowing that if Paige or Prue spoke up first they would berate him for leading them to believe that Billie was okay and then revealing otherwise.

"I can find him and then I'll come back and tell you," Cole assured them, but Prue and Paige immediately shook their heads.

"No," Prue said sternly and Cole rolled his eyes. "We don't trust you," she stated plainly and he sighed having already known this was what they were going to say.

"Then why did you ask for my help?" he challenged smugly and Prue fell silent knowing when she was beat. "Face it. You need me," he pointed out and Paige shook her head hating the situation. "But I can't defeat him," he finally admitted and Phoebe nodded knowingly.

"It takes the Power of Three," she said and he smirked.

"Think the four of you can handle it?" he taunted and Prue clenched her fists forcing herself to not throw him around the room like a rag doll.

"I'll write the spell," she said instead and grabbed a pad of paper and a pen from the table on the far side of the room. Before they could get any further in their preparations, they were stunned into silence when they saw a figure begin to orb into the attic. In seconds they recognized it as Luke who quickly glanced around the attic taking in the tense atmosphere around him.

"Oh good," Cole murmured sarcastically. "Another whitelighter."

"Luke? What are you doing here?" Piper asked surprised to see the young whitelighter. "How did you get here?" she added as she realized he had never been to their home.

"It wasn't easy," he replied sounding slightly out of breath. "You have no idea what I went through to find this place," he said shaking his head.

"Well why didn't you ask a demon," Piper questioned, only half joking. "They all seem to know where we live."

"That's true," Cole smirked as he began to laugh quietly off to the side. Prue shot him a hateful glare that he returned. "We used to have maps of San Francisco down in the Underworld. Y our house was circled…" he trailed off shaking his head as he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against a wall. "God, those were the days," he said wistfully and Phoebe rolled her eyes sensing that Cole was lashing out to get attention.

"Ignore him," Phoebe advised and Prue nodded in agreement so Piper did as her sisters instructed.

"Is Ashlyne okay?" Piper finally questioned Luke thinking that would be the only logical reason for him seeking them out.

"She's fine," he assured them. "Billie?" he asked and Paige shrugged sadly.

"A demon called Valac has her," Piper answered knowing that Luke felt responsible for Billie's abduction. "It's probably a trap for us," she told him and he nodded solemnly in understanding. "We just have to find where he's keeping her and then vanquish him with the Power of Three."

"But with the four of you…" he trailed off and Prue nodded in agreement with his unspoken statement.

"It won't be a problem," she assured him before Luke's curious gaze landed on Cole. "He's supposedly helping us," Prue muttered and Luke raised his eyebrows at her skeptical tone. "Although I highly doubt-"

"Hey," Cole finally called out, raising his voice slightly. "You asked ME here, remember?" he pointed out as he pushed away from the wall and walked over to where Prue had been standing. Losing what little patience he had left, he let out an angry sigh but cut Prue off before she could respond. "I have better things to do than search for your lost little witch friend who could be anywhere in any dimension!" he yelled and Phoebe finally stepped away from the stand the book was on and walked closer to Cole.

"Really Cole?" she asked, her eyes flaring in anger. "You have better things to do?" she challenged, done taking his threats and taunting. "Do you have someone _else_ to torment? Someone _else's_ life to destroy?" she yelled and his jaw set tightly while he remained silent. "All that time while you were dead did you find another victim?" she paused, waiting for him to respond. When he didn't, she raised her eyebrows and continued. "Huh, Cole?" she asked and when she was done you could hear a pin drop in the room. Nobody dared move, or even breathe, as the two ex lovers stared each other down, waiting for the other to make the next move.

"Phoebe," he breathed, finally breaking the silence but she shook her head in disgust before walking away.

"Don't Cole," she whispered turning away from him. "Just don't even try it. Prue write the spell."

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Billie gasped for breath as the invisible pressure against her chest was released and she sagged against the cavern wall. These demons had had her captured for what had to be a quite a few hours now. Hopefully it wouldn't be long before the sisters came up with a plan to help. If it took them much longer, Billie wouldn't be strong enough to aid in her own rescue.

"Tell us, Witch," the leader of the group snarled, "do you think your whitelighter has noticed you're gone?" he asked allowing an evil smirk to cross his face. "Considering I'm going up against the four Charmed Ones I'd have thought they'd have shown up to stage a marvelous rescue by now," he mused and Billie rolled her eyes.

"Prue is dead!" she shot back, annoyed that this demon insisted that the four Charmed Ones were all alive and active. "She has been for almost six years."

"Ah, she _was_ dead," her captor agreed stepping back slightly and walking back and forth in front of her. "Until a few days ago when the remaining Charmed Ones resurrected their sister," he explained, yet Billie's mind was foggy from torture and trauma.

"They didn't do that," she insisted shaking her head, but she remained confused when the demons all chuckled. "They would never risk innocents for personal gain," she pointed out knowing that even demons would agree with that.

"Not intentionally," the marked demon laughed before his cruel eyes bore into Billie's dull, nearly lifeless face. "But a spell always has its consequences, now doesn't it?" he asked and Billie finally put the pieces together. They had resurrected Prue when they restored the nexus.

"So that's what you want?" Billie retorted hoping to get information out of him now that he seemed willing to talk. "Prue? All four Charmed Ones?" she asked and her captor shook his head.

"You wish," he responded quietly before he magically slammed her head into the wall behind her and she fell unconscious.

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"Okay Cole, we're not sending you there alone," Prue insisted as she passed out copies of the spells to the other three witches. "You'll probably tip off Valac that we're coming," she snorted and Cole did nothing to deny her comment. "So you're taking me with you then we'll come back and get these guys," she said gesturing to Piper, Paige, and Phoebe.

"Can't I take Phoebe?" he asked visibly disgusted at the thought of taking Prue with him. "Or Piper even," he offered knowing he would do anything to avoid being around Prue or Paige.

"No," Prue said shaking her head. "I'm coming with you," she insisted and Cole sighed before grabbing her hand and shimmering out.

"That guy's a-"

"Coop, don't," Phoebe interrupted, knowing that she didn't want to hear whatever Coop had to say about Cole. "I don't want to hear it," she added softly before leaving the attic without another word. Coop looked after her before turning to Leo in confusion.

"Don't push her about Cole," he said quietly. "We still don't even know if he's evil or not," he pointed out and Coop's eyes nearly bulged out of his head.

"Are you kidding me?" he exclaimed standing up off the couch. "Did you hear him? Those things he was saying?" he asked and Leo shrugged.

"That's just Cole," he admitted and Coop rolled his eyes before heading towards the attic door to follow Phoebe.

"Coop, don't," Piper spoke up. "I'll go," she offered and Coop nodded knowing that he was in no condition to console Phoebe over her demonic and possibly still evil ex-husband. As Coop settled back down on the couch Piper left the attic and walked down the stairs to find Phoebe sitting in her old bedroom.

"Hey," she said softly as she walked in and sat on the bed next to Phoebe. "How're you doing?" she asked and Phoebe just shrugged and shook her head.

"I have no idea," she admitted and Piper looked at her sympathetically. "He just frustrates me to no end," she groaned and Piper didn't need to ask to know that she was talking about Cole.

"The people we love always do," Piper told her and Phoebe looked up at her in surprise.

"Piper, I'm with Coop," she replied and Piper shrugged.

"But a part of you will always love Cole," she said gently. "He was your first love and he broke your heart," she reminded her and Phoebe took a deep breath and forced away painful memories of her past. "He'll always have some power over you because of that. But that doesn't mean that you don't love Coop," she assured her and Phoebe nodded.

"I know," she breathed as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "But sometimes I feel like he missed an entire part of my life," she explained and Piper nodded. "He wasn't really around when we were learning about magic and we haven't fought many big battles since he and I have been together," she said and Piper wrapped her arms around her younger sister and pulled her into a hug.

"I know Phoebes," Piper whispered having already suspected that Phoebe felt that way about Coop. "And Coop probably feels like he missed an entire part of your life too," she pointed out. "And Cole is a big part of that life, and having him around is a constant reminder for Coop that he missed out on a lot with you," she said and Phoebe pulled away and wiped a few stray tears off her cheeks.

"Thanks Piper," she said and Piper smiled at her and they fell silent until Piper spoke up again.

"Phoebe, I know I wasn't a good big sister-"

"Piper," Phoebe interrupted knowing that Piper was being too hard on herself. "No," she said but Piper was shaking her head and a few tears had gathered in her eyes now.

"Yes," she insisted. "Paige came around, I had the boys, and I wasn't always there for you and I'm sorry," she said but Phoebe shook her head.

"Piper, you were the best big sister I could have asked for," she assured her but now the tears were falling down Piper's face and now she was shaking her head.

"I wasn't Prue," she whispered and Phoebe sighed before their eyes met.

"And I wasn't you, Piper," she pointed out and she too felt a few tears leak from her eyes. "I wasn't a good middle sister. We did the best we could after losing Prue," she said. "I didn't know how to mediate between you and Paige. You were the one that was the mediator!" she joked and Piper laughed slightly through her tears.

"I felt guilty for making you have to mediate," Piper chuckled and Phoebe wrapped her in a hug. "I knew how hard it was, but I didn't know how to be a big sister," she murmured quietly. "I always tried to think about what Prue would do, but sometimes I wasn't sure. Prue was…"

"Prue," Phoebe finished for her and Piper nodded with a smile. "I know," Phoebe agreed. "And now she's back," she whispered and a few more tears fell down both girls' faces. "We were the only two that went through everything Piper," Phoebe whispered softly and Piper nodded. "We were the only ones that were around the whole time."

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"Don't you dare accuse me of not caring," Cole seethed angrily. "You think I didn't watch everything Phoebe did while I was dead?" Cole exclaimed to Prue as the argument they were having in an empty cave escalated.

"Oh, I'm sure you did!" she yelled, her eyes narrowing. "And I'm sure you've spent this time convincing yourself that you two are still meant to be together. Am I right?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, but Cole's jaw tightened in response and he remained silent. "That's what I thought," she said before grabbing his arm. "Let's keep looking. We don't have much time," she grumbled and without another word Cole shimmered off to the next cavern they had to check.

When they shimmered into this cavern they immediately spotted a demon guard who Cole instinctively shot an energy ball at. The demon was immediately vanquished and Cole pulled Prue behind him and they hid in a small alcove. He glanced back at Prue and nodded and she silently stepped out and crept along the wall until she got to the edge and peered around. She saw about a dozen demons milling around and a small blond head crumpled helplessly in the corner. Not wasting another moment she hurried back to Cole. With a quick nod he shimmered them back to the manor.

"We found her," Prue announced as they reappeared in the attic. By the time they arrived everyone was gathered in the attic silently awaiting their return. "They have Billie and a bunch of guards," she said and Piper and Phoebe nodded before Piper grabbed a few potions she'd had already made.

"These should help," she said handing them to Phoebe since she didn't have any active powers. "They'll blow up most demons," she explained and Phoebe nodded understanding Piper's plan.

"You have to be prepared for your magic not to work down there," Leo spoke up and the four sisters turned to him confused. "If Billie can't call for Paige then some magic is somehow blocked. Paige won't be able to orb in. Cole can get in because he's a demon," he explained and they glanced at Cole realizing they would need him to bring them to Billie. "The Power of Three…or Four should still work, but your individual powers may not," he said and Prue and Piper nodded having already considered that as a possibility.

"Well if that happens, we'll throw the potions and hope we can say the spell fast enough," Piper reasoned and Prue nodded.

"And grab Billie and get out," Paige finished and the sisters linked hands before reaching for Cole.

"Woah, wait a minute!" Luke exclaimed shocked that they were going into this fight so unprepared. "That's your plan?" he balked and Prue shrugged.

"Well, yeah," she answered and the other three sisters nodded.

"That's, that's not a plan!" Luke babbled in shock. "You have to be prepared. Like you were to restore the nexus and to vanquish Oriax. That was a plan," he responded but Piper shook her head ready to reply when Cole cut her off.

"Listen Kid," he addressed Luke before grabbing Prue's hand who was the closest sister to him. "They know what they're doing. Don't screw with what works," he said before shimmering all of them out of the attic.

**So there you have it. I'd like to hear your thoughts on Luke, Cole, and Coop. Are you liking their roles in the story? Would you like to see more or less of any of them? Where do you want them to end up, etc.? There are a lot of ways I can go with this story, and I have a plot in mind, but if a lot of you would like to see something else I could always change things up a bit. So please, just let me know what you're thinking of the story so far. Even if you're not thrilled with the direction, I'm okay with constructive criticism. So...I'm begging for some reviews here guys!****  
**


	23. Chapter 23

**Sorry it took so long again. My grandma was visiting so I felt bad ignoring her to write! And then this weekend I had a huge 2 day festival concert to go to and I was exhausted until today! But I'm back finally and if I get some more reviews I'll be updating again quickly. And I saw that a lot of you want Phoebe with Coop and a lot of you want her with Cole. Obviously I can't do both, but I have made a final decision. But I'm not telling. You'll have to wait and see. There will also be some Cole and Wyatt/Chris interaction fairly soon, I promise! Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter!  
**

Ch. 23

They shimmered into the same alcove where Cole and Prue had arrived the first time. They remained silent knowing that the element of surprise would help them in the fight. Assuming that their powers all worked, they shouldn't have a problem beating the demons, but they didn't know how much good magic was blocked down here.

"Test your powers," Cole commanded in a hushed whisper. His powers were fine because they were rooted in evil, but the girls still weren't all convinced he would be willing to help. While Cole and Phoebe watched to make sure they weren't spotted, Prue found a small rock near her feet. She concentrated her eyes and moved it a few inches being careful not to attract attention. Once they were satisfied that her powers worked, Piper froze Cole, and upon seeing that she too could use her powers, unfroze him. Paige tried to orb, but she was blocked and wasn't able to go anywhere.

"Rock," she whispered and the rock that Prue had just moved appeared in Paige's hand. "It's just orbing," Paige whispered as she silently set the rock back on the ground. "The rest of our powers seem fine," she pointed out and everyone else agreed.

"Then let's do this," Piper said stepping around Cole slightly and reaching up until her hands were in line with the demon guards. She immediately blew one up drawing attention to their position. Before any demons could attack, Prue sent one flying into the far wall and Phoebe ran around the edge of the cavern in the direction of Billie who was still tied up.

Although most of the demons were distracted by the attack of Prue, Piper, and Paige, Phoebe was left virtually unprotected should one of the guards decide to close in on her instead. Seeing this, Cole swore under his breath and rushed to follow her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XX

Billie regained consciousness to a vicious battle and she smiled to herself when she saw Piper had most of the guards frozen and many others were exploding at her hands. Then Billie noticed a fourth witch who she didn't recognize. When she saw her use telekinesis to throw a demon's energy ball at another demon, Billie realized that must be Prue.

A surge of adrenaline rushed through Billie as she realized that the sisters –all four of them, had come to rescue her. She tried again to free herself from her bindings, but it was futile. They were magically tied and all she was doing was tiring herself out. She focused her attention back on the battle and she noticed that Valac was nowhere to be found. With a sinking suspicion she realized that Valac had anticipated this and wanted this to happen. It had been a trap.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 

"Knife!" Paige called seeing a tray of weapons near where Billie was tied up. She orbed the knife into a nearby demon's chest and watched as he exploded into flames. She cringed at the thought of what the weapons tray had been used for, but she knew now she could use it to her advantage. "Weapons!" she yelled and all the weapons from the tray flew up and into the chests of various demons vanquishing them all at once.

"Nice," Prue commented to her youngest sister, genuinely impressed with what she had been able to do. Paige smiled before calling for the energy ball Piper had just frozen and sent it reeling back towards another demon.

"Paige!" Piper exclaimed as she saw a demon sneaking up behind Paige with a sword. Before Paige could even turn around Prue had flung the sword out of the demon's hands and sent him flying nearly thirty feet across the cavern.

"Sword," Paige said and clenched tightly to the sword as it appeared in her hand. "Thanks," she said turning to Prue who simply shrugged with a smile.

"What are sisters for?" she replied before they returned to the battle, determined to provide enough of a distraction for Phoebe to free Billie.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XX

Billie could see that Prue, Piper, and Paige were having no trouble fighting off the guards, but she couldn't see Phoebe. Finally she spotted her coming around a corner on her left side, but to Billie's horror one of the most ruthless guards who had been torturing her had seen Phoebe.

"Phoebe!" Billie cried out desperately trying to warn her. She wasn't sure what Phoebe could do to defend herself, but she had to try. Billie had seen firsthand what this particular demon could do with his powers, and if he wanted to hurt Phoebe, or worse, he would have no problems doing so. "Look out!" she called when she realized Phoebe hadn't heard her first warning. "Phoebe!"

Phoebe looked in the direction Billie was staring and she spotted a tall demon rushing towards her with his hands out in front of him. Phoebe ran, but she was no match for the demon who must have been nearly seven feet tall. In a matter of seconds, Phoebe saw the demon shoot electricity out of his hands and straight at her chest. She wasn't fast enough to react and move out of the way and she waited for the impact.

Instead, she heard a growl and saw a mass of black and red jump in front of her to absorb the shock and an energy ball flew into the demon that had attacked her. That demon exploded into dust and she looked down to see Belthazor lying practically motionless at her feet. His flesh was singed where the bolts of electricity had hit him, and she fell to her knees beside him.

"Cole," she whispered, her voice hoarser than she had intended. When Belthazor remained motionless below her, she felt fear begin to consume her. She placed both her hands on his chest and despite the fact that he was still breathing, Phoebe felt panic spreading through her. "Cole!" she cried out louder this time shaking him slightly. This time he reacted immediately by transforming back into Cole and grabbing her by the throat with one hand.

She stared at him with wide eyes, half relieved that he was okay, and half terrified that he could snap her neck right here and she probably wouldn't do a thing to stop him. His fingers tightened around her neck and he sat up until his face was even with hers.

"That was careless, Phoebe," he hissed standing up and hauling her with him by the neck. "You're going to get yourself killed," he muttered shoving her in the direction of Billie before following her silently.

Cole hadn't been in the mood for a battle. His mind and his emotions were reeling from everything that had happened since his return. Even before he'd gotten his memories back he had felt a connection to Phoebe, and when his powers were activated, the surge of emotions he had always felt for her nearly bowled him over. The mixture of love and hate was all consuming and he still wasn't sure which extreme would prevail.

He had managed to force his emotions to the back of his mind throughout the battle, but the second he saw that demon attack Phoebe he snapped. He would always love her. He knew that and he accepted that. But he also knew that he hated her. She had given up on him when he'd needed her most. But death as a punishment did not fit the crime. If she was going to be punished it would be at Cole's hand, so he would protect her until he was ready for her.

He looked around and saw a dozen demons still ready and willing to kill the witches, including Phoebe, and he was filled with rage at the thought. He found himself unable to control his impulses and he quickly surrendered to the demon inside him. With a roar he unwillingly transformed into Belthazor and threw out a stream of energy balls from behind the demons. The demons were taken by surprise, and the energy balls vanquished all the remaining demons. With an animalistic snarl, Belthazor turned back into Cole. He looked down to see Phoebe and Billie staring at him with a look of shock and awe and he rolled his eyes.

"Untie her," he growled, wanting to get them back to the manor so he could get away from them.

"They're magically bound," Billie replied and Cole didn't both to wait to see if Prue or Piper could untie her. Instead he carelessly threw an energy ball at her chains and stomped away as she was freed. He couldn't be around Phoebe anymore. He just couldn't.

"Are you okay?" Phoebe asked Billie although she was staring after Cole wondering what had caused him to lose control like that. She'd seen him as Belthazor before, but there was something different this time. He wasn't even bothering to control his demonic half.

"I will be," Billie replied as Paige, Prue, and Piper rushed over to them. Phoebe helped Billie stand.

"Let's get you out of here," Piper suggested but Billie shook her head knowing that this wasn't over.

"No," she refused and the four sisters stared at her in confusion. "The leader," she muttered shaking her head and Paige walked over to her seeing she was in pain. She began to heal her but Billie shook her head knowing they didn't have time. "He's still here. I don't know…it was a trap for you," she explained and Prue suddenly turned having already felt uneasy about how simply they had won.

"Valac," she said under her breath and Piper and Phoebe could see that Prue had a plan in mind. "You remember the spell?" she asked and the other three witches nodded so she grabbed hands with Piper. "Fool me once," she murmured and the other sisters looked at her curiously. "Transmogrification," she told them. "Eames almost beat us with it once. I won't let that happen again," said, her voice determined.

The four of them nodded in agreement before they began chanting the spell.

"_A demon known by others alike_

_Reputation precedes and forces unite_

_Sisters stand together as one_

_Now until the vanquish is done."_

They stood wondering if they had succeeded and looked at each other. Nothing visible had happened, but they hadn't seen Valac in the first place.

"Maybe he wasn't here," Paige offered but a movement from a large rock in the corner informed them otherwise as the rock transformed back into a demon.

"He's here," a voice said and the sisters turned to face a demon who they recognized from the book as Valac. "Lovely spell," he taunted. "Just the effects you were hoping for I'm sure," he murmured sarcastically.

"Why didn't it work?" Paige asked and Piper and Prue both shook their heads.

"I don't know," Piper admitted as she tried to freeze him or blow him up, but he seemed immune to their powers. Prue also tried her powers, but they weren't working on him either.

"Your individual powers won't work on me," Valac informed showing them an amulet he was wearing that would indeed protect him from individual witches' powers. As the sisters tried to come up with a new plan, an athame magically appeared in Valac's hands. "And did anyone tell you the Power of Four isn't a real thing?" he stage whispered and Prue's eyes narrowed as she understood the implications of what he was saying. "This couldn't have played out better," he sneered. "Now I have the Charmed Ones and the Ultimate Power here and helpless," he chuckled stepping closer to them.

"Say the spell," Prue ordered her sisters as she suddenly let go of their hands. "Just you. The Power of Three," she explained feeling as if her heart had been ripped out of her chest. She was no longer a part of the Power of Three. She was just a witch. Not Charmed. She had been replaced. "Do it," she insisted knowing that they didn't have much time before Valac got impatient and attacked them.

Following her instructions, Piper, Paige, and Phoebe joined hands and repeated the spell.

"_A demon known by others alike_

_Reputation precedes and forces unite_

_Sisters stand together as one_

_Now until the vanquish is done."_

When there were still no effects, Valac practically howled in laughter. The four sisters backed up in fear and Phoebe briefly wondered where Cole was. She considered calling for his help, but she was distracted by Valac's next words.

"Don't you get it?" he asked. "When you brought Prue back you broke up the Power of Three. The line was changed," he laughed he tossed the athame and caught it back in his hands. A look of understanding crossed Phoebe's face and she grasped Prue's hand tightly.

"Me, Prue, and Piper," she whispered to her sisters and Paige stepped back so the three of them could try the spell.

"_A demon known by others alike_

_Reputation precedes and forces unite_

_Sisters stand together as one_

_Now until the vanquish is done."_

The second the last word of the spell was uttered, Valac screamed in agony as the ground shook and he burst into flames. The girls watched his vanquish, and soon all that was left was a pile of dust. They remained silent, unsure of how to react to what had just happened.

"Well, so much for the Power of Four, huh?" Paige finally said as she tried to smile but failed miserably. She was now the odd sister out. They wouldn't need her anymore now that they had Prue back to complete the Power of Three. They'd grown up together and now they could fight evil together. Paige had nothing to offer them. As if reading her thoughts, Phoebe wrapped Paige in a tight hug.

"You'll always be our sister Paige," she assured her. "And you're still a witch. And a whitelighter. We still want you to help us," she told her and Piper and Prue nodded in agreement. "Nothing will change," she promised and Paige nodded knowing that they would all try to stay close despite the loss of the connection of the Power of Three.

"Paige," Billie called from where she had sunk to the floor of the cavern. "Could you, help?" she asked weakly and Paige rushed to her side. Billie had cuts and gashes all over her arms and upper chest and undoubtedly there were internal injuries as well. Without another word Paige held her hands over Billie's worst cuts. After a few silent moments Billie was healed and she stood up with Paige's help. "Thanks," she said as Paige wrapped her in a hug, relieved that she was safe.

Suddenly, Billie and Paige were enveloped in a bright white glow and they both felt power surging through them. The light disappeared almost as quickly as it had come, but it was clear that something had happened.

"What was that?" Paige asked, her head whipping around wildly and all five of them looked at each other in complete and total shock.

"No idea," Piper finally said. "But let's get out of here," she suggested and Prue and Phoebe nodded. "We might be able to orb out," she said. "Whoever cast the spell to block magic is probably dead, so…" she trailed off and Phoebe glanced around to see if she could find Cole, but she didn't see him anywhere. The five witches linked hands and successfully orbed back to the manor.

"Phoebe," Coop exclaimed as he saw the girls orb in. "Are you okay?" he asked and Phoebe only nodded in response, still concerned by Cole's quick disappearing act.

"Billie?" Leo asked and Billie shrugged as she walked to the couch.

"I'm fine. Paige healed me," she assured them all knowing they would be discussing what had happened when they'd tried to vanquish Valac with the Power of Four.

"Where's Cole?" Coop asked and Phoebe shrugged unsure of how to answer the question.

"He left," she stated simply knowing it was the best she could do since she herself didn't know where he'd gone. "After the battle," she added feeling the need to point out that Cole had helped them.

"Leo," Piper began as she stepped towards him slightly. "Do you know anything about the Power of Four?" she wondered and he looked at her curiously before shaking his head.

"No," he replied and the four sisters glanced at each other and sighed. "Why?"

"Because it didn't work," Piper told him and his eyes widened in shock.

"Is Valac-"

"We vanquished him," Prue spoke up as Phoebe glanced at Paige wondering how she was feeling at the moment. "With the Power of Three," she said and Leo looked at Prue sadly.

"Oh, Prue," Leo said sympathetically. "I'm sorry. You're still-"

"No Leo," Piper cut him off with a shake of her head. "The original Power of Three," she explained and he looked in shock between Piper, Phoebe, and Prue and then looked to Paige who simply shrugged unsure of her role in the family now, magical or otherwise.

"W-what?" he finally asked. "Does Paige still have all her powers?" he questioned and they all nodded and Leo sighed as he realized what may have happened. "Prue was born first," Leo said quietly. "The Power of Three is meant to be the three first born to this generation," he told them, and they all looked at Paige and Phoebe walked over and wrapped her in a tight hug.

"You're still going to do everything with us, Paige," she promised and Paige only nodded feeling guilty for wishing she was still a part of the Power of Three. How could she wish that Prue had never come back? How was that fair?

"What about what happened with me and Paige?" Billie asked breaking the uncomfortable silence that had fallen upon the group.

"What happened?" Leo asked quickly and Paige and Billie glanced at each other before looking back to Leo.

"We're not really sure," Paige admitted as she spoke for the first time since they'd arrived back at the manor. "After everything was over and I healed her, I hugged her, and some glowy thing happened around us and…I don't know," she said shaking her head as Billie jumped in.

"I felt some surge or something," she explained with a shrug. "I don't know how to explain it.

"You two might have some sort of connection," Leo suggested. "It sounds like the same thing that happened when the sisters first activated the Power of Three. And when they activated it again with you, Paige," Leo pointed out and Paige thought back to the first time she'd felt that power and she did have to admit the feeling was similar to what she'd felt with Billie.

"But, why?" Billie finally asked and Leo shook his head.

He was interrupted when Luke orbed in. He'd been called out by the elders while the girls had been rescuing Billie, and he was relieved to see they were all back safely.

"Can you believe it?" he asked excitedly rocking back and forth on his feet.

"Believe what?" Piper asked warily.

"Haven't you heard?" he wondered having assumed that the Charmed Ones would have been the first to know. When he only received blank stares he finally revealed the reason for his visit. "That I'm your new whitelighter!" he exclaimed happily with a wide grin on his face, never noticing the tears welling in Paige's eyes.


	24. Chapter 24

**I'm SO sorry it took so long to get this chapter done. I don't really have a good excuse. Classes started this past week, but I still should have had it done, so thanks for sticking with me. Usually when it takes this long for me to update it means I got really into _reading_ fan fiction, and that is exactly what happened. This was kind of a boring chapter to write because I've had it planned for so long, but I have my sister beta everything and she loved it, so I hope you guys do too. This is like the beginning of the third big story arc (Oriax, Billie's kidnapping/Valac, and now this one).**

******PLEASE leave a quick review and let me know what you think. It was a tough chapter for me to get through, and the next one might be too. After that my plans are a little more exciting to write again, but reviews ALWAYS help! Enjoy. :)  
**

Ch. 24

Cole shimmered into the Underworld, furious with himself for letting Phoebe get to him like she had. He didn't know what he was looking for down here, but it was better than everything up there. He didn't want to make himself known to the demon community yet, so he lurked in the shadows. He crept around a sharp corner and was surprised to find a guard raise an energy ball to stop him. Without waiting for an explanation, Cole threw his own energy ball and killed the guard. Three more guards stepped out of similar hiding spots and Cole quickly vanquished them in a similar manner.

Shaking his head at how far the demonic world had fallen since his own vanquish, Cole walked around the corner wondering what, or who, required guards. He stayed silent, still unsure whether or not he should make his presence known. He could hear voices on the other side of the wall and he opted to listen to their plans before making a final decision.

"The original Power of Three is active yet again," a demon stated and Cole rolled his eyes. Of course they were. What did these demons think was going to happen when Prue was resurrected? "The Charmed Ones are at their strongest. Never have they had all the knowledge and experience they now have and the power of the first born witch," the demon spat out in disgust and Cole could hear many other voices murmuring their hatred for the witches.

"They are not our only concern," another demon spoke up and all the other demons fell silent. Clearly this voice was the one of the leader. "The Ultimate Power is still in league with the Charmed Ones," he revealed and Cole sighed. Of course it was. "Both threats must be eliminated." Oh, Cole wanted in on this. He stepped around the rock that had been hiding him from view.

"And you have a plan for this?" Cole asked and every eye in the room turned to the intruder.

"Belthazor! How did you get in here?" the leader hissed in anger. "I would have foreseen-"

"Your _bodyguards_ out there couldn't stop a whitelighter," Cole mocked in annoyance. "I don't know what happened to this place since I've been gone," he murmured as his eyes roamed the demons in the room. "But I assume the Charmed Ones were behind it?"

"They eliminated the Triad," one of the demons explained and Cole nodded having already known this. He'd been watching Phoebe despite his own death.

"And still, this is the best you could do?" Cole asked with a laugh in his voice and his arms sweeping out to the side to indicate the room around him.

"Valac was behind the attacks before," the leader spoke up and Cole shook his head rolling his eyes.

"And I assume that you think you can do better?" Cole asked and the demon stepped closer to Cole.

"I know I can," he whispered threateningly. "I have powers no other demon, including you, Belthazor, have ever possessed."

"And what would those powers be?" Cole asked skeptically, but as the demon revealed his powers to him, Cole smirked slightly. This demon actually would be a serious threat to the sisters. Maybe Cole was in the right place after all.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"What? No," Piper replied as she clutched Paige's arm, pulling her against her side as she shook her head in Luke's direction. "Paige is our whitelighter," Piper insisted and Phoebe and Prue immediately agreed.

"We're not working with anybody else," Prue vowed and Paige smiled slightly. She doubted the Elders would agree to them not working with Luke, but at least her sisters still wanted her to be their whitelighter.

"We want Paige," Phoebe asserted and the four sisters had instinctively formed a semi-circle around Luke.

"Paige will be busy with-"

"No," Piper spoke again leaving no room for misunderstanding. "Paige is our sister and she's our whitelighter. That's it," she stated firmly. "Now go. Tell them we won't work with anyone besides Paige," Piper instructed, hushing him as he began to protest. "Go," she repeated waving her hand in dismissal as Luke orbed out in defeat.

"What the hell is that all about?" Billie asked as she headed towards the sisters. "Do you think it has something to do with the Power of Three?" she wondered out loud and the sisters all looked at each other and shrugged wishing they had an answer.

"I doubt they would remove Paige as your whitelighter just because she isn't part of the Power of Three anymore," Leo chimed in, trying to be delicate in his wording to avoid upsetting Paige further. "I mean, besides Paige, whitelighters are never actual charges anyways, so…" he trailed off and Piper and Phoebe sighed out loud feeling like they were at a total loss.

"The Elders always have a reason for doing things," Prue informed them and every set of eyes in the room turned to look at her questioningly. "What?" she asked with a shrug. "I…knew…an Elder while I was…up there," she stumbled through the explanation and Phoebe glared at her knowing she wasn't telling the whole truth.

"Prue," she warned and Prue sighed in exasperation.

"Okay, so I had a little…affair with an Elder," she admitted and the entire room was filled with shocked gasps and Prue rolled her eyes.

"An affair with an Elder?" Piper exclaimed in disbelief and Prue confirmed it with a nod. "I know Leo and I loosened the rules a little bit, but letting you guys have an affair is like just chucking the whole rule book out the window," Piper sputtered in disbelief as her arm flung out to the side in a mimicked gesture of flinging a book out the window.

"Do they have windows up there?" Phoebe asked Leo quietly who nodded with an amused smile.

"It wasn't a serious thing…" Prue trailed off but Piper had sunk her teeth into this and she was going to chew it to pieces.

"An Elder?" Piper questioned. "How? I mean, you were dead, Prue!" she yelled trying to keep the shocked smile off her face, but her older sister shot her a look.

"Well so was he," she pointed out and Piper finally conceded.

"When was this?" Phoebe finally asked and Prue turned her attention to her, smiling at her.

"Around the time the Elders sent Coop to you," Prue revealed and Piper and Leo's eyes widened in recognition.

"You mean…" Leo trailed off as Prue shrugged.

"You didn't think I'd let _them_ choose my sister's boyfriend, now did you?" she answered with a wink in the direction of Coop who grinned in return. "I made sure I found a nice and totally hot guy for you Phoebes," Prue assured her and Phoebe rushed forward and wrapped Prue in a tight hug.

"You always took care of us," she whispered gratefully. "Even when you were dead."

"You were my little sisters," she told all three of them with a smile. "I watched over all three of you," she said looking at Paige pointedly. Before any of them could respond, they were interrupted by bright orbs and Paige sighed inwardly. Of course they couldn't just let things go and allow her to stay the Charmed One's whitelighter.

"Luke," Piper groaned as he appeared, but she was cut off as she noticed another figure next to him. He had brought an Elder with him and the surprise silenced Piper.

"Why is an Elder here?" Paige asked stepping forward, her being the one most comfortable dealing with them. "I can still be their whitelighter. I-"

"It is not a question of whether or not you can, Paige," the Elder spoke before sighing deeply. "My name is Listos, and Lucas thought you might need my assistance in understanding what has taken place recently," he explained gently and Prue fought back the urge to roll her eyes. That was exactly why her affair with the Elder had been so short. She couldn't stand their calm speech and gentleness ALL the time.

"We understand it perfectly," Paige assured him. "The old Power of Three is back. But I can still be their whitelighter," she said, proud that she had kept the pleading out of her voice.

"You are correct that the original Power of Three is once again active. They are strongest with Prue because she was the first born of this Halliwell generation," he explained and the sisters glanced at Prue who ignored them knowing that wasn't what the Elder was here to tell them. "Lucas will be the Charmed Ones whitelighter," he stated simply and as the girls all jumped to argue, Leo cut them off.

"Why can't Paige still have them as her charge?" he asked and Listos actually smiled. "She'll have even more time to devote to their cause."

"She will have a destiny of her own to fulfill," Listos answered cryptically. "The Power of Three is the most powerful source of good magic ever. The prophecy allowed for that power to live on in the case that one of the sisters died. If one of them died, Paige, the fourth sister, would inherit the deceased witch's power. Therefore the Power of Three would be able to continue to fight for the side of good," he said and Paige felt like her heart was being stomped on in her chest. "That was why she was never to know of her family history unless one of the sisters was killed. If the need for her to be part of the Power of Three never arose, her destiny would have been much different," he admitted and Paige looked at the floor, unable to look at her sisters anymore.

"That still doesn't explain why we have to get a new whitelighter," Phoebe argued and the Elder sighed. He had heard these witches were difficult, but…

"After the prophecy about the Charmed Ones was written, there was another," he revealed and things in Leo's mind finally clicked.

"Oh man," he whispered and Piper glanced at him in question. He shook his head and gestured towards Listos knowing it would be better that they hear it from the Elder.

"As Leo seems to have deduced, the Ultimate Power was prophesized as well," Listos told them and Billie stepped forward feeling for the first time like she wasn't intruding on a family matter. "This power was to consist of the witch with the power of projection," he gestured towards Billie while all eyes in the room fell to her. "And the long lost sister," he finished and Leo smiled knowing that he had been right.

"But Christy is dead," Billie argued and Prue shook her head.

"Not Christy," she explained and Listos nodded. "Paige."

"That's correct," Listos told them and Paige's eyes widened. "The prophecy never stated that it was to be Billie's lost sister. Paige and Billie were supposed to be the Ultimate Power. However, the Power of Three is stronger than the Ultimate Power and is prioritized first. If three witches capable of completing the Power of Three are alive, they will become the Charmed Ones regardless of whether or not the Ultimate Power can still be complete."

"What about Christy?" Billie asked sadly and Listos sighed.

"Christy was a witch, but she was never meant to be part of the Ultimate Power. Unfortunately, demons misunderstood the prophecy and kidnapped her thinking that was how they fulfilled the 'long lost' part of the prophecy," he told her and she nodded in understanding. "While you worked together you were never actually the Ultimate Power. All that power you had was simply your powers combined. The Ultimate Power will be much stronger," he assured Billie whose eyes widened as she remembered all the things she and Christy had been capable of. Her and Paige were going to be stronger than that?

"So I'm the one that can complete either the Power of Three OR the Ultimate Power? That's why I was born?" Paige asked and Leo and Listos both nodded in confirmation. "Wow," she whispered.

"Now, Paige will be the whitelighter for Billie and herself, but with her Ultimate Power duties and her charges, she cannot remain the Charmed Ones whitelighter," Listos insisted and the sisters looked at each other. Prue, Piper, and Phoebe glanced at Paige and she nodded slightly in acceptance so they looked back to Listos and nodded as well. "Good. Lucas will guide you well. However, since you are sisters you will be able to call for Paige just as you always have," he informed them and they smiled relieved that they would still have that connection.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Send three of your best demons," Cole instructed the leader. "And send them now."

"Even with the Power of Three _and_ the Ultimate Power intact? And in one place?" the leader asked skeptically and Cole rolled his eyes.

"Well don't expect them back," Cole retorted with a snort of laughter. "But you need to send a message," he informed him. "Let them know who they're dealing with. And I know just how we're going to do that."

"We?" the demon asked and Cole smirked.

"You don't actually believe you can do this yourself, do you?" Cole asked stepping closer to his challenger. "I know those witches. I know their every move. And if I'm not on your side…" Cole trailed off giving the demon a threatening once over with his eyes. "I'm on theirs," he told him simply. "And by the looks of things down here, you need me a hell of a lot more than they do."

"Fine," the demon accepted and Cole smiled arrogantly. "How do you suggest we proceed?"

"I'm surprised you don't already know."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 

The sisters and Billie had been bombarding Listos with questions about their powers and their destinies until he finally held up a hand to silence them. Leo had stepped in more than once to act as an intermediary, but all four Halliwells were too much even for him to handle.

"Man, I do not envy you," he murmured to Luke with a laugh as he shook his head. Suddenly three angry demons shimmered into the attic, and without another word Listos orbed out.

"Always helpful in times of trouble!" Piper yelled sarcastically towards the ceiling. Leo, Coop, and Henry rushed for the attic door knowing if they stayed they would only be in the girls' way. "Luke, get them out of here!" Piper instructed motioning to the men running for the door. Quickly doing as he was told, Luke orbed to the men and then orbed all four of them downstairs.

"Who sent you now?" Prue asked rhetorically before she flung the nearest demon into the wall behind him. Piper blew up the one nearest her while Paige orbed crystals into a circle around the third. "Piper?" Prue asked gesturing to the demon she'd temporarily knocked unconscious.

"Oh, right," Piper replied as she blew him up too. "You!" she called out threateningly pointing to the demon in the cage. "You're just a hired gun. Who sent you?"

"W-we were all hired," the demon answered immediately. "Astaroth sent us here. We serve him," the demon told them and they all glanced at each other wondering why this demon had so willingly given them information. "He told us to tell you."

"Astaroth?" Paige clarified and the demon nodded. "Well, tell him that we're coming for him," she instructed before removing one of the crystals and allowing the terrified demon free.

"You let him go?" Billie asked in confusion. "Why? He was a demon?"

"He was a message," Prue corrected with a sigh as the sisters instinctively walked to the Book of Shadows. "Now we need to find out who this Astaroth is.

"Luke, it's okay. Bring them back now!" Piper called not sure where Luke had taken their husbands and boyfriends. In seconds the four men appeared in orbs in front of them and Leo and Luke walked towards the book.

"What's going on?" Leo asked knowing by the looks on their faces that this was more than just a simple attack by a few demons.

"Astaraoth," Phoebe said with a shrug as Prue flipped through the pages of the book. "He sent those demons and wanted us to know."

"Astaroth?" Leo repeated with a glance at Luke who looked at him in concern. "I should have known that's who was behind this," he muttered at the same moment that Prue found the page in the book.

"Here," she stated running her finger along the text. "The demon of knowledge," she read. "Well that doesn't sound too bad," she commented but Leo looked grim.

"He has knowledge of the past, present, and future," he told them and all five witches deflated. "If he wants to, he can know what you'll do before you'll do it. It's the 'gift' of knowledge," Leo told them and Prue scanned the rest of the page confirming what Leo had said.

"He's powerful," Luke added. "He doesn't have knowledge over the future of demon's. Only that of humans and witches," he explained. "But he does have past knowledge of what has happened with each and every demon and that gives him power in the Underworld."

"Not to mention he has a lot of demonic powers of his own," Leo reminded him and Luke nodded in agreement. "Nothing else out of the ordinary," Leo rushed to say. "But…enough that he'll be tough to beat even if you get him one on one. The Power of Three might not be enough."

"Well then it's a good thing we have the Ultimate Power of Three, isn't it?" Prue spoke up and Paige grinned. Slowly the rest of the witches in the room smiled and a confidence overcame them. "We'll come up with something. We always do."

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"Why did they send him back?" Astaroth roared in anger as Cole calmly walked up beside him and the demon who had just shimmered back from the fight at the manor.

"Because they weren't threatened," Cole said simply. "Just as I knew they wouldn't be. Benjy here is going to be our new messenger boy," Cole grinned as he ruffled the hair on the young demon's head.

"Their time is short," Astaroth assured Cole who ignored the comment. "I have seen it." Astaroth flamed out, and when Cole was left alone with the young demon he kicked him hard in the stomach.

"Get out," he demanded and the demon quickly shimmered away. Stuck alone in the Underworld, Cole looked around. Where the hell was he supposed to stay tonight? He was still considered dead in the real world, and he hadn't secured enough allies to sleep safely in the Underworld yet. At the moment he didn't feel like expending the energy it would take to seek out and make new demon friends, so he shimmered to the Halliwell attic. He wasn't surprised to find all of them crowded around the Book of Shadows, but he wasn't about to wait for them to notice him.

"You would think the five most powerful witches of all time would notice when a demon shimmered into the room," Cole stretched out on the couch near the crowd of people who all turned to glare at them. "I see I haven't lost my touch," he noted and Phoebe rolled her eyes.

"What are you doing here Cole?" she asked and he smirked before settling his eyes on Coop.

"Nowhere else to stay," he shrugged. "I don't suppose you and Cooper have a guest room available? Or the cupid could always sleep on the couch," Cole suggested lewdly with a grin in Coop's direction.

"Leave him alone, Cole," Prue spoke up and Cole sighed melodramatically.

"Prue, you're actually one of the reasons I stopped in," he told them and nine sets of eyes remained fixed on the two of them. "The world still thinks we're dead," he reminded them. "And until you work out some explanation with all your fancy ties to the government…" he trailed off and Piper, Phoebe, and Prue glanced at each other realizing that Cole had a very valid point. "I can't get on with my life. Which is what you've always wanted for me, isn't it Phoebe?" he asked fixing his eyes on her for the first time since he arrived.

"Cole," she said warningly but he stood up.

"Don't worry, Phoebe," he assured her. "I have a new…hobby…now," he smirked and Piper didn't like the look he was giving her younger sister.

"I'll go call Agent Murphy. He owes us a favor," Piper said quickly leaving the attic but she could still hear Prue's voice as she walked away.

"Cole, don't you think…that bastard just shimmered away in the middle of my sentence!" she exclaimed angrily.

**Come on guys, please review. Good or bad, just let me know. Thanks!**


	25. Chapter 25

**I'm so sorry that it took me this long for an update. My only excuse is that this semester has been crazy. I have NEVER had this much work before and I was not expecting it to be this demanding. Anyways, I really hope you guys are sticking with the story. I got a lot of reviews for the last chapter and I appreciate them SO much. So to everyone that read and reviewed last time, thank you. And to everyone who has stuck with the story despite the long wait, thank you too.**

Ch. 25

"Amulets?" Cole sneered as Astaroth hung an amulet around one demon's neck before hanging the other amulet in his hands around a second demon. "That's your master plan to defeat the Charmed Ones? And the Ultimate Power?" he was forced to add, reminding himself that this wasn't only about the Charmed Ones anymore. It was for him…but not for anyone else.

"Not just any amulets," Astaroth smiled patiently towards Cole. "These amulets are the most resistant to good magic. In fact, no witch's magic, not even the Power of Three or the Ultimate Power can get through them," he assured Cole who only shook his head.

"They'll find a way," he warned and Astaroth nodded.

"They will, yes. I have seen it. If they simply combine Charmed and Ultimate Power they can easily get through the amulets," he admitted and Cole stared at Astaroth wondering how he had risen to power. His plans were terrible…

"They'll figure that out in a second," Cole shot back and Astaroth shrugged.

"They do figure it out rather quickly," he conceded and Cole glared at him angrily. "But not before two Charmed Ones and half of the Ultimate Power die."

"Which two?" Cole asked immediately and Astaroth's chuckle only infuriated Cole more.

"Ironically, the two that haven't been dead yet," he replied and Cole's fists clenched at his sides. "And the whitelighter," he added unnecessarily as Cole wasn't paying attention anymore.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"So I was in witness protection?" Prue clarified and Piper nodded.

"And so was Cole," she added and Prue grimaced but Piper only sighed. "We have to have a story in case anybody sees him," she pointed out and Prue rolled her eyes. "It's not like we can trust him to stay away."

"It's not like we could ever trust him for much," she retorted and Piper silently agreed.

"That's not true," they heard Phoebe's voice as she entered the kitchen. "There was a time when we could trust him," she reminded them and both of her sisters stayed quiet. "When he was Belthazor," she said softly. "The human in him was strong enough. We could trust him," she finished in a whisper and Prue spoke up.

"Well he's Belthazor again. Can we trust him?" she questioned and Phoebe sighed.

"I don't know," she admitted and the sisters shared a knowing glance before heading back to the attic.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX X

"So how does this work?" Cole asked one of the demons wearing the amulet. He was clearly proud to have been chosen for such a task, and Cole inwardly rolled his eyes knowing the demon would die.

"I stay in the Underworld," he bragged running two fingers over the amulet around his neck. "The oldest Charmed One and the witch with the power of projection will come with their new whitelighter," he revealed and Cole snorted. Prue would destroy this demon.

"Good luck," Cole muttered as he began to walk away. "Oh, and the Charmed One," he advised with a smirk. "When the demons mock her it makes her lose control," he said, wording it carefully on purpose. The demon grinned, obviously thinking Cole was giving him a tip to help him win. Without another word, Cole turned the corner and left as he began to put the pieces of the puzzle together.

Billie and Prue would be down here with Luke. That meant Piper, Phoebe, and Paige would be at the manor to fight the second demon. Of course that's how they'd split up, he sighed. Prue and Billie were strongest so they'd go alone with the rookie whitelighter. The rest stay together fighting like they have been for six years. But something was going to happen to get Piper, Phoebe, and Paige all killed. That meant that either both Piper and Phoebe or Paige had to be knocked out. Piper and Phoebe were both stronger than Paige, so logically it would be her, he reasoned.

He had to find a way to keep Paige safe long enough for them to defeat this demon. Or get Billie back there somehow…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Phoebe flipped to Astaroth's page in the Book of Shadows and gasped loudly as she was pulled into a premonition. Everyone else in the attic waited expectantly as her eyes flew open and she breathed heavily.

"Phoebe, are you alright?" Coop asked but he was ignored as Phoebe began flipping frantically through the book.

"What did you see, Phoebes?" Prue wondered and Phoebe waved her hand in the air aimlessly.

"Some type of amulet thing," she explained vaguely and Leo walked over to lend his assistance. "I don't know. It was around some demon's neck. There's two of them."

"Amulets?" Piper asked but Phoebe nodded.

"Astaroth is sending one up here and leaving one in the Underworld," she told them and she suddenly stopped on a page near the back. "This is it. This is the amulet," she stated confidently.

"The Magia Universus Amulet?" Piper read aloud and then she frowned. "There's nothing else here. What does that mean?" she asked Leo who shrugged slightly.

"It means the Combined Magic Amulet," he translated. "But beyond that I don't know," he admitted with a sigh. "But we'll find out."

"Combined Magic probably means all of us," Billie suggested and they all glanced around the room before nodding.

"Charmed and Ultimate Power," Prue concluded and Leo crossed his arms over his chest.

"Could be," he told them and they all seemed to agree.

"Well, then that's what we're going with. We have to get rid of the one in the Underworld too, I assume?" Piper asked Phoebe who only shrugged.

"I'm sure with it the demon can go cause an apocalypse or something," she mused. "So one of you have to go," she gestured towards Billie and Paige," and one or two of us have to go."

"I'll go," Prue volunteered and Piper opened her mouth to protest knowing that traveling to the Underworld was like going into the lion's den. "No," Prue raised her hand to stop her. "We both know that I have the best chance down there," she pointed out and Piper and Phoebe both sighed knowing she was right.

"And I guess I have to go," Paige said with a smile, secretly thrilled to be spending time with Prue, but Prue only shook her head.

"No," she said again and Paige looked at her in confusion.

"But I have to orb us down there," she pointed out and Prue sighed.

"We might need Billie's projection power, and it makes more sense to split us up since we both have telekinesis," she reminded her and Paige tilted her head in a silent consent. "So Luke's coming," Prue informed the group with a bright smile.

"What?" he exclaimed shocked that he had somehow gotten dragged into the battle. "Whitelighters don't fight."

"The Charmed Ones' whitelighter does," Leo informed him with a satisfied smirk as Luke sputtered helplessly.

"Okay," he relented knowing he was painfully outnumbered. "But you won't be able to call for me," he reminded them dutifully.

"We'll have Paige," Piper assured him. "We'll be fine. Now, off you go," she instructed with a grin as they orbed away.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 

"You go in, you shoot the whitelighter witch, and you get the hell out," Cole instructed sternly and the darklighter looked at him in confusion.

"Shouldn't I go after the children? While I'm there I should at least-"

"No," Cole snarled angrily as he grabbed the darklighter by the collar of his shirt and hauled him up against the wall. He shifted into Belthazor and bared his teeth to the darklighter at his mercy.

"You'll go in there, shoot the witch, and get out. It should take you five seconds," he growled and the darklighter nodded in fear. "You orb out of here the second I tell you two," he hissed through clenched teeth before finally letting go and allowing the darklighter's feet to touch the floor again.

Cole knew he was taking a risk. Astaroth might not know a demon's present or future actions, but as soon as it was all over Astaroth would know everything Cole had done. He shook his head forcing himself not to think about that until later.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XX

"So we just wait here until a demon wearing an amulet shows up?" Paige questioned and Piper shrugged.

"I guess. I don't really-"

"Paige!" Phoebe cried out in fear as she saw the darklighter orb in behind her sister. He immediately shot Paige with an arrow and orbed back out before anyone could react. Paige fell to the ground, her stomach contracting in agonizing pain around the arrow. "Paige," Phoebe whispered as she rushed to Paige, Piper right behind her.

"Get her on the couch," Piper instructed as Leo and Coop came over and lifted her onto the nearby couch. "We have to get the arrow out," Piper reminded them and Paige nodded her consent. Henry hurried over, terrified at the knowledge that this was the one thing that could truly kill his wife.

"LUKE!" Phoebe yelled even though she knew he couldn't hear her. "Luke," she said more quietly as Piper wrapped her hand around the arrow protruding from Paige's stomach. She yanked it out in one quick motion and Paige cried out in pain as the arrow left her body.

"Sorry," Piper said trying to remain calm. "We need a whitelighter," she spoke softly to Leo and Phoebe wondering what they were going to do. "And we need Paige to fight," she reminded them knowing that a powerful demon was on the way to the house.

"Another whitelighter won't get here in time to-"

"We don't need a whitelighter," Phoebe interrupted as she stood over Paige. Without waiting for a response from anyone else in the room, Phoebe began to chant.

"_What's mine is yours,_

_What's yours is mine_

_Let our powers cross the line_

_I offer up this gift to share_

_Switch our powers through the air."_

The second the powers were switched, they all watched as Phoebe held her hands over Paige and the wound on her stomach began to glow. In a matter of minutes she was completely healed and Phoebe sat back breathing a sigh of relief.

"I can't believe we have two whitelighters and I still had to do that," she mused and Paige laughed.

"Me neither. But being the one needing the healing really takes a lot of the pressure off," she smirked but Henry shook his head.

"Not for me," he sighed as she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze and stood in front of Phoebe prepared to recite the spell to switch their powers back.

Before they could even start, a demon shimmered in and threw a fireball at their backs. Piper reacted quickly and froze it as her sisters turned to face the demon. They spotted the amulet hanging around its neck and Piper experimentally tried to blow up the demon. Her power was merely absorbed into the amulet and had no effect on the demon whatsoever. Leo, Coop, and Henry rushed out of the attic as per the plan, leaving the sisters to fight.

"Okay so, we were right," Piper pointed out as Phoebe tried to orb away from a fireball. When she was unsuccessful with controlling the new power, Piper froze it and Phoebe darted around it. "Our magic doesn't work."

"Fireball!" Phoebe yelled experimentally trying out Paige's power as she called for the fireball intending to try and throw it at the demon. Instead it landed in her hand burning her severely as she cried out in pain and she dropped it onto the attic floor.

"You have to aim for the demon, Phoebe!" Paige called out and she felt totally helpless in the fight. The only power she had was premonitions. Phoebe had physical fighting skills, but those were still in Phoebe's body so Paige didn't have a lot to offer at the moment.

"I realize that now, Paige," Phoebe retorted with a groan as Piper single handedly tried to distract the demon. She blew up a potion they had sitting around, but the demon didn't bat an eye.

"A little help here!" she exclaimed as she ducked under another fireball. Paige started to move in on him, at least as a distraction, but he was quicker. The demon flung his arm out and Paige flew into the air, crashing hard into the wall across the room. "Paige?" Piper questioned as she froze the fireball the demon was sending towards Paige.

"I'm okay," Paige murmured as she picked herself up and stumbled back towards the sisters. "Let's finish this," she suggested but the demon only threw her across to the other side of the room and her body crumpled motionless to the floor. The demon followed up by throwing the couch down on top of her so she couldn't move.

"Paige?" Piper asked, growing even more concerned when she received no response. "Phoebe, get to Paige," she instructed and Phoebe orbed away from the fireball blazing towards her chest and managed to arrive right by the couch. Piper continued to freeze every fireball the demon threw, hoping he wouldn't use his telekinesis on her as she waited for Phoebe to get to Paige and heal her.

"I can't get to her, Piper!" Phoebe called out and Piper spared a quick glance in their direction. "She's unconscious," Phoebe added and Piper knew they had to think quickly.

"Keep trying. We need her," was all Piper could offer as she tried to fight off this demon that was immune to her powers.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XX

"Where are we going?" Billie asked quietly as the three of them crept silently along the Underworld.

"I don't know," Prue admitted. "But Astaroth knows we're coming," she reminded her. "He'll be able to find us," she stated grimly.

"So we just wait here?" Billie replied not liking the idea of waiting for the fight to come to them.

"No," Prue shook her head. "I go find them," she said before her body stilled next to Billie and she astral projected away.

"We really should have planned this better," Luke whispered but Billie only smiled at him.

"You're way too uptight," she told him and he shrugged sheepishly. "Regular whitelighter ways don't work for the Charmed Ones," she said before their conversation was interrupted.

"I found them," Prue announced as her body suddenly became animated again. "They're not far, come on," she urged as she took off running in the opposite direction they had been heading.

"Shouldn't we be quiet?" Luke asked as they ran noisily along the stone ground.

"They know we're coming," Prue responded as she rounded a curve and came to a stop. When Billie and Luke reached her side they saw a group of about twelve demons, one of which wore an amulet, surrounding them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XX

When three more demons shimmered into the attic, Phoebe knew Piper was outnumbered. These other demons could be beaten, but when combined with a currently undefeatable demon, it would be tough. She hurried to her older sister's side, planning her attack the whole way.

"Potion," she called and a potion appeared in her hand. She wasn't sure what it would do, but it was worth a shot. She threw it at the demon closest to her, and he froze, completely unable to move. Piper had tried, but failed to blow up these demons so they were clearly immune to that particular power. Fire and energy balls were flying at them, and as fast as Piper was freezing them, the demons were throwing more. Phoebe didn't think she could control Paige's telekinesis so she didn't try to redirect them back towards the demons.

"Phoebe, we HAVE to get Paige," Piper said as her eyes scanned the attic for something that might help. "We can't beat them without her."

"Let's get rid of the rest of them," Phoebe suggested not sure of how else to handle the situation.

"They'll send more," Piper rationalized even as she ran to the shelf where they kept some ready-made potions. She found more that replicated her freezing power and quickly threw them at the two remaining demons while Phoebe was distracting them by orbing to different places in the attic. To her relief, both demons froze leaving only the one with the amulet.

"We still need Ultimate Power," Phoebe muttered as she orbed next to Piper who quickly grabbed her hand.

"We have it," she realized. "You have it," she clarified and a look of recognition crossed Phoebe's face. With their hands joined, Piper tried to blow up the demon. This time the amulet exploded, and the demon cried out in agony as he burst into tiny pieces, his minions unfreezing and following suit.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXX

"I thought you would have brought more demons," Billie commented before she threw an athame at the one nearest her. It struck him in the chest and Billie used her powers to bring the athame back to her. "Luke, use this!" Billie yelled as she threw another knife at him. He looked up at her in shock, but with one glance around the cavern he knew he didn't have a choice. With a nod he orbed off, reappearing directly behind a demon and shoving the knife in his stomach. When the demon exploded into flames, Luke grinned in pride and Billie smiled at his excitement.

The moment didn't last long when the demon wearing the amulet joined the fight. He threw an energy ball towards Prue who merely redirected it at another demon nearby. The remaining ten demons closed in on the witches, but Luke orbed in behind some of them taking them by surprise with his knife. Billie threw two demons into each other, and Prue spun one around right as he threw an energy ball so he threw it into the demon next to him. The three of them fought fluidly, working together and taking out the demons quickly.

When only the demon wearing the amulet remained, Prue grabbed Billie's hand. They both concentrated, their eyes squinting, and the amulet suddenly exploded from the inside out. The demon was burned by flames and acids from the amulet, and within seconds he was nothing but a pile of ash.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXX

Piper called for Coop, Henry, and Leo and she could hear their footsteps as they rushed back upstairs. Seconds after the demon was vanquished, Prue, Billie, and Luke orbed back into the attic.

"What happened?" Leo asked as the three men hurried in.

Ignoring Leo, Piper and Phoebe rushed towards where Paige was still lying motionless. "Prue, move the couch," Piper ordered and Prue glanced around the attic trying to piece together what had occurred.

"What happened?" Prue wondered and Phoebe fell to the side of the couch, trying again to get to Paige, but she was still buried.

"Paige is under there," Piper told her and Prue immediately shoved the couch across the floor. Luke rushed over and began to heal her, and Phoebe let him knowing he was much better at it than she was. They all waited with bated breath as his hands glowed, and Henry hurried over and knelt down beside his wife.

"Come on, Paige," he whispered grabbing her hand. Coop walked over to Phoebe and she leaned into him, waiting nervously to see what would happen with Paige. After a long, tense moment, Paige's eyes opened and she sat up. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and Henry immediately gathered her in his arms.

"What about the demon?" Leo asked worrying that if Paige had been knocked out they couldn't defeat the demon with only Charmed power.

"We vanquished him," Phoebe stated and Leo looked to Piper who nodded.

"Phoebe switched powers with Paige after the darklighter, so-"

"A darklighter?" Prue interrupted and Piper only nodded again.

"Phoebe had Ultimate Power and you had Charmed power," Leo finished for her and Piper nodded yet again.

"Wow," Paige muttered. "Good thing that darklighter attacked," she mused.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXX

"How did one darklighter ruin all my plans?" Astaroth roared in anger as he threw two fireballs at the nearest demons. "They ALL survived!"

"I told you," Cole muttered, relieved he had killed the darklighter after it had returned from the manor so it couldn't give him away. "They're awfully good."

"The darklighters are to be on our side!" the enraged demon pointed out and Cole shrugged.

"The entire Underworld wasn't privy to your plans Astaroth," Cole deadpanned and Astaroth turned toward Cole, annoyed that he wasn't intimidated by his power of knowledge.

"I still haven't seen how it's happened," Astaroth hissed angrily. "It must have been planned somewhere in the Underworld," he muttered which confused Cole.

"Why?" he asked knowing that as soon as Astaroth saw how it had been planned, Cole would need to make his escape.

"I can't see things that happened in the Underworld," he revealed and Cole expertly hid the surprise and relief he felt. "Not until they officially become part of the past which is usually a few days at least," he grumbled. "Luckily the witches haven't formulated a counterattack yet."

"They will," Cole assured him and Astaroth glared at Cole who merely shrugged. "I'm just saying…" Cole trailed off as he took a few casual steps around Astaroth's lair. "They won that last round. They always come out on top, and so far you don't have an edge."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXX

"We have to do something about this guy," Paige said wearily as she sat at the kitchen table. Leo leaned against the counter with his arms crossed wondering what their next move should be. Piper handed him a dish and he automatically put it away as she continued cleaning the kitchen. Phoebe was checking her work email on her laptop, and Henry sat back in a chair across from Paige.

"Where's Billie?" Prue wondered and Paige gestured towards the stairs.

"She's studying the book again," she said and Prue nodded in acceptance of the answer.

"How can you all be so calm about this?" Coop asked with a hint of fear in his voice. "This demon is trying to kill you guys and you're not doing anything about it!"

"Coop, demons were always trying to kill us," Phoebe reminded him but he only sighed, frustrated that she wasn't willing to give him any reassurance.

"We don't really have a next move. Until Astaroth does something or we get more information, we're stuck waiting," Prue explained and Coop nodded slightly. "So we might as well get on with our lives, right?" she pointed out and Coop shrugged, still feeling unsettled. "Look," she said as their eyes met. "If one of the couples that you set up have a huge fight, do you stop living your life?" she asked and he shook his head.

"I try to fix it," he replied and Prue smiled. "And that's what you're doing," he muttered as he finally began to see their point. This was just how they worked. Demons attacked…and they checked their email.

**So please leave a quick review. I feel a little detached from this story since it's taken so long for me to get a chapter finished. Let me know if I did okay and stayed in character with everyone. **


	26. Chapter 26

**First of all, I am SO sorry it took me this long to update. I had a huge project that started in November that I finally finished last weekend. And I started writing a little Christmas story that I thought would be quick, but it turned into a big story itself. Between those two things I haven't had a lot of time to devote to this story. However, I do have the plot planned and I love it so I am back into it. **

**Hopefully some of you have stuck with me. I really appreciate those of you who have reviewed and/or PMed me encouraging me to update. It really helps motivate me. I know it didn't seem like it this time, but without you guys this chapter may never have happened. You'll see as you read that this chapter required me to be a little clever so it took even longer to write than it normally would. Also, I apologize for how lame the spell is. Usually I can write a decent enough spell, but I had nothing for this. I didn't want to hold up the chapter for it, so just bear with me for those four lines of terrible spell writing!  
**

Ch. 26

"I'm not leaving," Paige announced as night fell and her entire family was gathered in the Halliwell manor. "I'm not going home because I don't think we should split up," she explained and Piper glanced towards Prue for approval.

"You don't need my permission Piper," Prue assured her with a smile. "It's your house," she told her and Piper sighed knowing it was going to be hard not to look at Prue as the experienced older sister. Technically, Piper and Phoebe were now older than Prue because Prue hadn't aged while she was dead.

"Okay, we'll all stay here," Piper replied. "Billie too," she insisted knowing instinctively that they shouldn't split up the Ultimate Power. "You know, for a manor, this house really doesn't have many bedrooms," she pointed out.

"Coop can go home," they heard from behind them and they turned around to see Cole leaning against the door frame.

"Look what the demon dragged in," Paige deadpanned and Cole glared at her, annoyed that she still had the gall to insult him.

"I thought I'd stop by, you know and see how you're doing," he replied with a smirk and a laugh in his voice. "After all, the all-knowing demon just tried to kill you."

"And you probably helped him," Prue spoke up and Phoebe saw Cole glance her way briefly to see if she would come to his defense. When she didn't, he immediately masked the pain caused by her indifference and strolled into the living room.

"If I had helped him, you would be dead," he retorted and Piper sighed knowing this could escalate quickly and she wasn't in the mood to deal with the familial drama. "Maybe not all of you," he conceded as he stared at Phoebe. "Definitely some of you," he said turning and fixing his glare on Coop. When the cupid began to step forward towards Cole, Phoebe put a hand on his arm to stop him.

"Coop, don't," she whispered knowing that Coop stood no chance against a demon, and even if it was just a verbal altercation, Cole had a way of twisting the truth.

"She's right Cooper," Cole taunted as he saw that he was getting under Coop's skin. "You shouldn't get in between Phoebe and me," he told him and a smug smile appeared on Cole's face. "As a cupid you should know about her love life," he said. "So you should know better than to stick around now that I'm back," Cole shrugged and Coop set his jaw in anger.

"Phoebe's with me!" Coop practically growled, but Cole didn't let go of his mocking tone or posture.

"But really, don't-"

"Let's go, Coop," Prue said suddenly as she walked over and grabbed Coop by the arm. "Take me to your apartment," she urged and Coop shot an angry glare at Phoebe and then another at Cole before beaming out of the house.

"Seems I upset the boyfriend," Cole grinned as Phoebe stomped closer to him.

"You son of a bitch," she breathed out wondering what she had ever seen in him. Nobody else had ever sparked such a rage in her. "Why do you insist on forcing yourself into my life?" she yelled as her palms collided with his chest and she shoved him backwards. "You ruin everything I have! Do you get some sick pleasure out of it?" she accused, her eyes blazing with an anger and betrayal she hadn't felt in years.

"I think _you_ do," he replied and she let out a frustrated groan as her fists clenched at her sides.

"Cole," she said warningly and she was barely aware of the other people still in the room.

"I know you miss what we had, Phoebe," he revealed, his voice low. "You'll never feel that again."

"No I won't," she agreed her eyes flashing back up to his. "Because now I have someone I love and trust. Something I never felt with you," she spat back and Cole sighed as he shook his head.

"But that's not enough for you," he retorted and she opened her mouth to reply but he cut her off. "If it was you would have asked him to leave when I provoked him," he pointed out and she simply stared at him wondering what truth he would twist his way this time. "But instead you waited until your sister did that and you stayed here to argue with me," he explained and Phoebe glared at him as she realized that he was right. She had wanted to argue with him. She wanted to confront him and get back at him for all the times he'd hurt her. Before she could reply he'd shimmered out and left her standing there in a room with Paige, Henry, Piper, Leo, and Billie.

"So," Paige spoke up trying to break the awkward silence that had fallen over the room after Cole had left. "Anyone up for a movie?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX X

"I don't know what to do about him," Coop muttered shaking his head as they arrived at the condo. "He won't quit until he has her back."

"Phoebe's strong," Prue assured him as he sunk onto the couch. "And she knows what kind of manipulation Cole's capable of."

"She always knew, she just didn't care," he pointed out and Prue sighed knowing he was right. She sat down next to him and they both fell silent. Neither one of them spoke for a long time, each of them waiting until the other spoke up. Finally, Coop broke the silence. "She still loves him," he stated plainly and Prue's head whipped around to look at him.

"You can feel that?" she asked in a panicked voice. "Being a cupid?"

"I can see it," he clarified in a defeated voice. "Being her boyfriend," he explained as he rested his head against the back of the couch.

"Well, she would be stupid to leave you for anyone, let alone Cole," Prue told him as she rested a comforting hand on his arm.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX X

"Coop's just going to stay at our condo tonight," Phoebe said quietly and Piper nodded. "And Prue's going to stay with him to protect him," she explained and Piper sighed.

"That's probably a good idea," she agreed knowing that Phoebe was feeling guilty for what Cole had accused her of. "Paige may as well go home now too if-"

"No," Phoebe interrupted. "We should stick together as much as we can," she insisted and Piper nodded not wanting to upset Phoebe any further. "Piper?" she asked quietly as she glanced around and saw that nobody else was in the kitchen. "Do you think he was right?"

"Phoebe, Cole always manipulated us," she told her having already expected this conversation. "Especially you."

"That's not what I'm asking, Piper," she replied quietly and Piper sighed. "I asked whether or not you thought he was right. Do you think I let him provoke Coop just so I could argue with Cole?" she asked and Piper shook her head and shrugged helplessly.

"Phoebe, nobody can answer that but you," she said gently and Phoebe found herself staring at the floor. "And the fact that you're this worried about it…"

"He's right," she relented and Piper stayed quiet knowing that Phoebe didn't need any judgment right now. "He knows me better than anybody, Piper," she said as she sat in a chair at the table. "Even you guys," she admitted and Piper nodded.

"Well, we never doubted that he loved you," she pointed out. "Even when he was the Source he loved you," she reminded her and Phoebe rested her head in her hand. "None of that was fake," she told her and Phoebe nodded reluctantly. "And neither were the feelings you had for him."

"I love Coop," Phoebe insisted and Piper held up her hands in surrender.

"I never said you didn't," she said and Phoebe sighed. "But you and Cole were…and are…each other's weaknesses."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXX

"I see your visit was successful," Astaroth stated happily the second Cole shimmered back into the Underworld.

"Even more than you know," Cole agreed and Astaroth tilted his head in confusion. "Their feelings, Astaroth," Cole clarified.

"I don't understand human emotion, or the human mind," Astaroth admitted and Cole nodded. "But I don't need to," he asserted and Cole shrugged knowing that Astaroth had no idea how much emotions could factor into people's actions. "The next spell the Charmed Ones cast will show them to be more careful with their words. I've seen to that," he said cryptically.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 

The five witches and Leo were gathered around the Book of Shadows early the next morning as they discussed how to vanquish Astaroth. They couldn't let him make the next move. They had to have some sort of plan.

"Well, his big advantage is having all the knowledge, right?" Prue pointed out and the rest of them nodded. "If we can't take that away from him, what if we write some spell that gives us more knowledge?" she suggested.

"We can't just ask for knowledge of the future," Piper argued and Prue shook her head.

"No," she agreed. "But maybe we can ask to use Phoebe and Billie's powers to help all of us have more knowledge," she explained and Phoebe shrugged.

"It could work," she agreed and Piper nodded.

"I can't think of anything better," she admitted so Prue handed Phoebe a pencil and notepad.

"Get to it Phoebs," she grinned and Phoebe rolled her eyes not surprised that her sisters were making her write the spell. She was the best at it.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Everyone ready?" Phoebe asked and the four other witches nodded before Phoebe handed out copies of the spell. "Okay then, here we go," she said as they took a deep breath and joined hands.

"_Premonition and projection_

_The power to give us knowledge_

_Reveal it to us now_

_Both Ultimate and Charmed."_

The five of them stood waiting, but when nothing happened they turned to Phoebe.

"Really not your best spell, Phoebs," Prue said with a raised brow.

"Well you could have written it," Phoebe retorted and Paige stepped in before they got into an argument.

"Wait and see what happens?" she asked and they let go of each other's hands and nodded. They left the basement knowing that until they knew what had happened with the spell they needed to get on with their day.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"That spell should have worked," Phoebe insisted nearly an hour later as she flopped onto the wicker couch in the conservatory. "I don't understand why nothing happened," she said and Prue rolled her eyes.

"We'll try something else," she assured her but Phoebe was pouting.

"It should have worked. It was a good enough spell," she murmured and Prue sighed.

"Just get over it, Phoebe," Prue groaned and before they knew it, Phoebe had disappeared. "Phoebe?" Prue called alarmed at the sudden vanishing of her sister.

"Phoebe where are you?" Piper called and they hurried into the living room as if that would give them a clue.

"I'm okay!" they heard Phoebe yell from upstairs. "I'm uh, I'm in the attic."

"How did you get up there?" Paige asked as the four witches, Leo, and Luke rushed up the stairs. They got into the attic to find Phoebe standing calmly in the middle of the room.

"Phoebe, what are you doing?" Piper wanted to know and Phoebe laughed uncomfortably.

"Well, Prue said to get over it. And I did," she told them pointing under her shoe where they saw a copy of the spell they had all read. "I can't step off it."

"What do you mean?" Luke wondered and Billie shook her head. He was so new.

"She means the spell backfired," Piper explained and Phoebe glared at her.

"It didn't backfire _exactly._ We do have more knowledge because apparently, whatever we say happens now," she said with a shrug. "It's just a little more literal than we expected."

"A little?" Piper accused, her hands on her hips. "You can't walk off of a piece of paper, Phoebe!" she exclaimed and Phoebe sighed.

"Well you know Piper, of all the problems we've had this hardly seems like the biggest," she retorted and Paige snorted.

"She's got a point. And the spell still might work. Sometimes they do," Paige pointed out and Piper sighed knowing she was right.

"Okay, then put the spell in your shoe Phoebe so we can get on with this," Prue suggested and Phoebe did as she was told. "I guess we just keep going through the day and see what happens."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Wyatt!" Piper scolded when she saw him orbing a cookie into his hands from the counter. Without a word he orbed the cookie back to the plate on the counter.

"What did he do?" Leo wondered walking into the kitchen.

"Tried to steal a cookie," Piper answered shooting a disapproving glare in her son's direction. "But I caught him red handed," she assured her husband who grimaced as the words left her mouth. She turned back to the dishes, but Leo and Wyatt had other things on their minds.

"Uh Piper?" Leo asked and she turned. He gestured towards Wyatt whose hands were now bright red.

"Oh no!" she exclaimed walking over to her son. She took one of his hands, but aside from the color they seemed fine. In fact, Wyatt seemed thrilled with the development and had a grin on his face. "Well, at least he's not kidnapped," she sighed and Leo smirked knowing she had a point.

"PAIGE!" they heard Henry yell from the living room and they hurried in to see him dressed in a pale blue onesie, a rattle in his hand, and a bib tied around his neck. As he tried to walk he stumbled and fell, tears immediately welling in his eyes before spilling over.

"Paige, what the hell is this?" Piper asked as she switched between the urge to laugh and scream.

"I called Henry and big baby, and well…" she gestured to where he was crumpled in the fetal position, sucking his thumb as he cried.

"You should write this spell in the Book of Shadows," Leo murmured in Piper's ear and she whacked him in the chest as she bit back a laugh.

"Well, put him on a couch or…maybe a crib," she smirked and Paige glared at her.

"Henry, couch," Paige called and Henry was orbed onto the couch where he snuggled under the blanket.

"I just got called into work," Phoebe yelled rushing down the stairs, putting in earrings on the way. "There's some photo shoot or something that if I don't do today I think I'm getting fired," she admitted and Piper sighed.

"Just try not to talk," Leo advised and Phoebe nodded as she headed for the door.

"Break a leg!" Paige called out and suddenly Phoebe collapsed in pain in the hallway.

"Dammit Paige!" Phoebe cried, cringing as pain shot up her leg.

"Oh god Phoebe, you really broke your leg, didn't you?" Paige asked as her, Piper, and Leo came hurrying over to her side.

"Actually Paige I think _you_ broke my leg," she spat out. "Now why don't you heal it?" she gritted out, her teeth clenched in pain.

"Right," Paige smiled apologetically as she held her hands over Phoebe's leg. It healed quickly and she helped her up. "Sorry," she said with a smile.

"Again, not the worst problem we've had," Phoebe assured her as she heard her cell phone ringing. "I gotta go. Sorry guys," she said as she headed out the front door.

"So what now?" Paige asked wondering if they needed to reconsider letting this spell continue now that it was getting harder and harder to control.

"I don't know," Piper admitted and Leo shrugged. "Where's Prue?"

"Her and Coop have been attached at the hip," Paige rolled her eyes as they heard two very frustrated people yelling from the conservatory. "Oops," Paige whispered as Prue and Coop stomped clumsily into the living room. It took them quite a while because they were in fact, attached at the hip.

"This is new," Billie commented from the stairs having just come down from looking for a solution in the Book of Shadows.

"You know what? I don't even want to know who did this," Prue told them as she dragged Coop over to the couch. She was about to sit down when she stopped short at the sight of Henry, his rattle tucked into his chest and his thumb stuffed in his mouth. "But I do want to know who did this," she said pointing to the baby on the couch.

Before they could get any further the front door opened and Phoebe walked back in.

"What are you doing back?" Leo wanted to know and she sighed.

"Well I made the suggestion that 'we not do this photo shoot and say we did' so that's apparently what we're doing," Phoebe explained and the rest of the family simply nodded in understanding. "This is worse than when we had that genie," she commented and Paige looked up in confusion. Prue shook her head indicating now was not the time for that story.

"OW!" Prue exclaimed as Coop accidentally elbowed her hard in the side. "Why do the spells always backfire the worst for me? I've been triplets, a man, then a dog, and now I'm a freaking conjoined twin!"

"Maybe we should reverse the spell," Paige offered but Prue sighed as she dragged Coop over towards her sisters.

"No," she grumbled. "They usually do end up helping in the end," she admitted and the five witches fell silent knowing she was right. "We just have to be careful what we say."

"Maybe we just shouldn't talk," Billie suggested seriously and the witches all considered it.

"We're probably supposed to say something to reveal some higher truth known by Astaroth," Phoebe said as she rolled her eyes.

"Well, I'm going to just be quiet as a mouse," Billie replied before groaning out loud. "Oh crap!" she exclaimed, but her voice was barely audible.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Piper asked finding herself growing more and more annoyed with the situation.

"Whatever's meant to be will be," Leo told them and Piper nodded her agreement. Suddenly Wyatt orbed in right in front of Phoebe's feet. She bent down to pick him up and smiled widely.

"Nice hands, Wyatt," Phoebe commented and Piper shot her a glare to which Phoebe only laughed. "Red's a good color for you," she assured him and Wyatt grinned at his aunt.

"He's so easy to make happy," Prue chuckled and Phoebe nodded.

"It's a piece of cake-DAMMIT!" she exclaimed as the little boy she was holding suddenly turned into a plate with a large piece of chocolate cake on it.

"Phoebe, you turned my son into cake!" Piper yelled and Phoebe looked at her apologetically and handed her the plate.

"Sorry buddy," she said to Wyatt as Piper took the cake from her and headed to the kitchen. "Where are you going?"

"To put him in the fridge or something. I don't want him to get…stale," she called behind her as she walked through the dining room.

"Would it be totally wrong to eat the frosting on my finger?" Phoebe asked the room and Paige hid her laughter as Phoebe quickly licked her finger before Piper returned. They heard a soft scratching and turned to see Billie laughing hysterically, but almost silently, from the stairs, and the room erupted into laughter at the sight.

"Billie, you look ridiculous," Phoebe told her through her giggles.

"She looks like she's on something," Luke added concerned and Paige burst into laughter all over again.

"Oh god, she looks as high as a kite!" Paige exclaimed, and all laughter immediately ceased as Billie was suddenly floating in the air.

"PAIGE!" Billie screamed, but her voice was still a mere whisper.

"Sorry," Paige said sheepishly as Piper finally walked in.

"You guys! I leave for one second and it's like a zoo in here," she grumbled and immediately wild animals began roaming around the house. "Oh crap!" she yelled flinging her hands up to freeze a couple of bison that were coming far too close for her liking. "This is insane."

When Henry burst into tears, the girls looked to see a monkey sitting on him, trying to take his rattle away. Prue glanced to her and Coop's, feet to see a much smaller monkey tangled around her leg. At the same time a group of penguins were waddling about the landing on the stairs.

"Piper, a little help here!" Phoebe called out and Piper looked to see Phoebe nearly at the top of the stairs and a giraffe, still in the living room, getting a little too personal with Phoebe.

"Um, Piper there's a lion!" Leo suddenly called out when a loud roar made the cat's presence known. Having already frozen the giraffe, Piper aimed for the lion. She flicked her hands, but it didn't freeze. She tried again, but the lion seemed immune. Everyone began distancing themselves from it, but then two tigers appeared in the room. Piper tried to freeze them, but they too seemed immune. When a polar bear appeared in the middle of everything Paige scoffed.

"Don't zoos have cages?" she pointed out and Piper glared at her.

"I'm sorry I wasn't specific enough in my simile Paige!" she shot back and she was frantically looking around the room at the deadly animals that had gathered.

"Prue, can you move them?" Phoebe asked and when Prue and then Paige both tried and nothing happened, Piper sighed.

"This spell was definitely not worth it. I swear, come hell or high water I will-SON OF A BITCH!" Piper exclaimed as the group was transported to a fiery pit surrounded by treacherous rocky ledges. Below them was only a deep black abyss with no end in sight.

"You just had to reference hell, didn't you?" Paige muttered as she struggled to keep her footing on the narrow ledge.

"I think the spell makes us talk this way," Prue replied knowing the number of common colloquialisms used that day was exceptionally high.

"This isn't how I remember hell," Phoebe commented and Leo looked over to her after he was convinced the rocks under him and Piper would hold their weight.

"There's different hells," he explained and Luke nodded. "Some are for demons, some for humans, some for magical beings that turn evil… I'm not sure which one this is," he admitted and Phoebe's eyes widened as she looked below her.

"It's the one with high water," she said, her voice giving away none of the fear she was feeling.

"What?" Piper exclaimed in frustration and annoyance as she looked down and saw the water rising fast. "It's OR! The expression is hell OR high water, not both!" she yelled trying futilely to freeze the water. Paige, having been on one of the lower ledges, felt the water seeping into her shoes and she orbed away onto the higher ledge next to Phoebe.

"So when is this higher truth going to be revealed?" Prue wanted to know. She and Coop were pressed flush against each other on a ledge barely wide enough to hold the two of them. His arms had instinctively wrapped around her waist so neither of them would fall, but she could feel the fire at her back.

"It better be soon or we're going to burn while we drown," Leo ground out as his fingers dug into the rock wall behind him. He could feel the heat of fire on his feet, and apparently in hell water didn't put out fire. A sound of hysterical crying distracted him, and he saw a terrified baby Henry curled as close to the rock wall as he could get and Leo sighed. "Paige, can you orb out?" he asked but she shook her head having already tried. "Dammit," he muttered under his breath, Piper being the only one to hear it.

"Okay we need to think," Piper announced and Prue looked over at her oldest younger sister, perfectly willing to let her take the lead. "What have we learned from this spell?"

"Well our words have a lot more weight to them than we thought," Phoebe said, nervous laughter in her voice as water splashed around her ankles. Well, she thought, better water than fire.

"It's Wyatt!" Prue suddenly exclaimed and everyone turned to look at her in confusion. "Leo said whatever's meant to be will be, and Wyatt orbed in," she reminded them. "But Phoebe turned him into cake before we could learn anything."

"So until cake talks, we're still drowning in the fiery pits of hell," Paige summarized and Phoebe glared at her.

Suddenly the water surged even higher and Phoebe and Paige had their legs swept out from underneath them. Paige reached for Phoebe, but she was too late and Phoebe's head cracked against the rock ledge before she plummeted into the fiery water.

"Phoebe!" Prue called out as they saw her struggling to swim and stay away from the flames in the swirling water. Paige had no choice but to orb up to a higher ledge to avoid the fire herself, when Phoebe was swept underwater by a current.

Hearing the desperate cries of her other sisters and Leo, Paige didn't waste another second. She sensed Phoebe and orbed to her immediately. It was an odd sensation, the flames licking at her skin as the water surrounded her, but she blocked it out. She felt her flesh burning, but then she felt Phoebe grab onto her arm. Before Paige could orb away her ears were ringing, her skin tingled, and she felt a wave of dizziness overcome her. Then a quick but horrifying flash of Barbas' cruel smile crossed her mind and her eyes flew open. They locked with Phoebe's, and Paige knew that her sister had seen the same thing.

As Paige went to orb them out of the water, they found themselves lying and gasping for breath on their living room floor, all traces of fire and water gone. The wild animals had vanished, Henry had grown back up, Prue and Coop were separated, and Billie tested her voice to find it at its normal volume. The spell had worked. They had found out what they needed to find out. But even before revealing what they knew to the rest of the family, Phoebe and Paige knew how they would take the news.

Somehow, Barbas was back.

**Please leave a review and let me know what you think. I hope this wasn't too confusing. If it was it'll be explained in further detail in the next chapter(s). At the moment it's supposed to be a little vague because they don't totally understand it either. Anyways, just let me know what you liked or didn't like.**


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